Grace and Jake: Senior Year
by EL Hyland
Summary: Casey's life as he raises his niece and nephew, who are sixteen year old twins, with Dawson. This is a sequel to Saving Grace (And Jake). It follows major themes of the show and crosses over with Chicago PD. Many father/daughter and father/son moments. Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

Grace was rushing to get ready for dinner. She was nervous about her family meeting her boyfriend's family. It wasn't just about nerves from meeting that parents, but she was nervous about how Ben's parents would see her and her family.

"I can feel your anxiety from the next room." Jake said as he appeared in the doorway of the bathroom.

"Twin perk?" She grinned.

"No, you're making me nervous." He said. "Will you just calm down?"

"Ben's parents are Christian, like really Christian." She said. "They have strong values about the traditional family. Our family is not traditional."

"Do they know about our parents?"

"Ben knows that we live with Matt and that our parents don't have custody because of their drug problems." She said. "But he didn't tell his parents and I never told him that Dad's in prison or Mom is still in rehab."

"Why?" He frowned.

"I told him not to." She sighed. "I don't want to meet his parents and have them judging us before they even know us."

"I don't care what they think about me."

"Well, I do care." She insisted.

"So, they think they're meeting your parents?" He grinned. "Do Uncle Matt and Gabby know?"

"Not exactly." She mumbled.

Jake grinned. "I'm pretty sure they're going to realize Gabby is not our mother. We aren't Latin."

"Now do you get why I'm nervous?"

"Are you two almost ready?" Casey interrupted.

"Ben's parents think they are meeting Grace's parents." Jake said with a smirk.

"I am your parent, Jake." Casey said. "These people don't need to know my personal business, or yours, in the first five seconds of meeting them."

"Thank you." Grace smiled at him.

"We're leaving in ten minutes." He said before leaving the room.

"You did the same thing at your UCLA tour." Grace said.

"Well, yeah, because Matt is our legal guardian. We were adopted." Jake said. "And after two years, I could care less what people think. He's our Dad."

Grace nodded. "I know."

"Then why are you so nervous?" Jake asked. "You aren't lying to them. Matt is legally your parent. And who cares what they think? If they judge you for a situation you had no control over, they aren't being very Christian."

"Look who got smart." She grinned.

"Hey now," He said. "I did get a 2100 on the SATs, you know."

Grace laughed and they finished getting ready. She curled her hair naturally wavy hair, creating bigger and softer curls. She had on light make-up; concealer, bronzer and mascara. She wore a simple dress that had tiny white, light pink and blue flowers as a print. It had a fit and flare silhouette with capped sleeves and a scoop neckline. She paired it with black flats and pearl stud earrings.

"You look beautiful." Dawson said as she handed her black pea coat to her.

"Thank you," Grace smiled. "So do you."

Dawson was a wearing a tight fitting royal blue dress with black side inserts to highlight her waist. She wore black pumps with a black jacket and carried a black purse. Casey was dressed in black dress pants and a burgundy dress shirt with a black tie. And Jake wore grey dress pants with a light blue dress shirt, open collared.

"Yes, my girls look very beautiful." Casey nodded.

"I'd say we look pretty dashing ourselves, Uncle Matt." Jake said. "Or should I call you Dad to prepare for this sure to be interesting evening?"

"Get in the car, you knucklehead." Casey grinned at his nephew.

"I call shotgun!" He said.

"Hey, I am your mother for the night!" Dawson said. "I get shotgun."

"Okay, ha ha." Grace said. "I get it,. It's all some big joke to you guys."

"I got dressed up for this." Casey said. "See these shoes, Italian leather. These pants, these are my good pants. And this shirt? This shirt is a lady killer. This is no joke."

"Exactly, I don't look this good for nothing." Dawson said. "If these people want to judge, this mama bear is going to be ready to fight."

"Oh, my God." Grace mumbled. "You're all insane."

"Are you embarrassed?" Casey asked.

"If you act like this, yeah." She said.

Casey turned and high fived Dawson. "Step one officially completed: Embarrass teenage daughter."

Grace shook her head, trying not to laugh as she made her way to the car. They walked into the restaurant and Grace scanned the room for Ben. They were already at the table and she gave him a nervous smile and small wave as they were lead over.

Ben and his parents stood when they approached. Grace could tell right away that they were wealthy. They were both dressed very well and so was Ben. They were a bit older than Grace expected but they didn't look snobby.

"Mom, Dad, this is Grace." Ben said. "And this is Lt. Casey, Gabriella and Jake. These are my parents, Jack and Ellen."

"It's nice to finally meet you." Ben's mother said as she shook her hand. "You're so pretty."

Grace smiled. "Thank you."

"Lieutenant?" Jack asked as they sat down. "Are you in the military?"

"No, I'm a firefighter." He explained and Grace quickly realized that Ben didn't tell his parents much, if anything about her family.

"A firefighter?" His Dad questioned. "What's that like?"

"It's a very challenging and rewarding career." He said.

"Lt. Casey is the commanding lieutenant of truck, which means he is responsible for figuring out how to put the fire out." Ben explained. "There's also squad, they rescue people, engine, they are in charge of the water distribution, and Emergency Medical Services. Gabriella is a paramedic with the firehouse."

"Ben, you can call me Matt." Casey said.

"So, you two work together?" Ellen asked.

"We do for now." Dawson said. "I passed the Firefighting test so I am being moved to another house to work."

"Oh, will that be challenging for your marriage?" She asked. "If you end up on opposite shifts?"

Dawson hesitated and shared a quick glance with Casey. "It may cause some problems but we think our relationship can stand it."

"What kind of shifts do you work?" Jack asked.

"We work twenty-four hour shifts, one day on, two days off." Casey explained and he had a feeling he knew where this was going. "When we're on shift, Grace and Jake stay with my sister."

"That's very nice of her." Ellen said. "It must have been hard when they were younger to be away."

"I think it's hard to be away from your children no matter their age." Casey said.

"That's definitely true." She said as she smiled at Ben.

The rest of the dinner went smoothly. Grace and Ben tried to keep his parents from asking too many prying questions about her home life. They talked about college, what Ben was taking and what the twins were thinking of majoring in and what schools they were looking at. Jack is a basketball fan so he talked to Jake a lot about his chances of playing college ball.

They ended the evening with what Grace considered a successful night. Ben's parents may have sensed something was different about their family, but they didn't seem too bothered by it if they did. Grace hoped they liked her and her family, as she knew their approval was very important to Ben.

When they arrived home they scattered to change. None of them were very fond of dressing up. Grace changed into yoga pants, a loose fitting t-shirts and a cardigan. She took off her makeup and threw her hair up in a bun before heading downstairs.

"Uncle Matt, that was emotionally exhausting." She whined as she covered her face and sat down next to him on the couch and leaned on his shoulder.

Casey laughed and wrapped his arms around her. "That's why you need to be yourself, sweetheart."

"His parents were really intimidating." She mumbled. "I was trying to look happy but I felt so on edge the entire time."

"I think it went well." He said. "You're just tired and worrying about it because you're overthinking it."

"Do you like him?" She asked as she looked at him.

"Yes, I've always liked Ben." He nodded.

"Do you think his parents liked me?"

"How could they not?" He smiled and kissed her head. "You need to get some sleep, baby."

Grace nodded and headed back upstairs. It didn't take long before Dawson knocked on her door and came into her room in a similar outfit a few minutes later. Grace was sitting on her bed with her laptop as Dawson sat down on the edge of her bed. Grace sighed and closed the laptop, knowing she wanted to talk about something Grace wasn't sure she wanted to think about.

"So, let's talk about Tyler." Dawson said. "Do you still have feelings for him?"

Grace nodded. "Kind of."

"And do you think you might have those feelings because Matt and I and some of people don't approve of him?" She asked. "Or do you really like him?"

"I love him, Gabby." She admitted. "I never got over him. Even after everything he did and what happened. Our relationship had no closure."

"Is that why you went out with him last weekend?"

"I wanted to see what it would be like." She said. "He's back to the boy I met when I first got here. The one that swept me off my feet and made me feel so special."

"He's your first love, Grace. That feeling is hard to let go of." Dawson smiled. "But you have to remember that he broke up with you when you wouldn't sleep with him and that he physically hurt you twice."

"He-"

"I know what you are going to say." Dawson said as she put her hand up to interrupt Grace. "He was on amphetamines. Which brings me to my next point, he gave you amphetamines."

"Why can't we put that behind us and move on?" She asked. "Everyone always brings it up. I made a mistake and I don't want it thrown in my face every time someone wants to make a point."

"I'm not bringing it back up to throw it in your face. I'm trying to remind you that your relationship with Tyler was not perfect." She said. "Ben is a really good kid, we like him and how he treats you. But, I don't want you to date him just because you know that we approve of him."

"I'm not." She said. "I like him too, I really do."

"Okay," Dawson nodded. "I just wanted to see where your head was at."

"If only my heart and my head agreed." Grace mumbled as Dawson left the room, closing the door behind her.

**PLEASE REVIEW!**


	2. Chapter 2

Casey slipped out of the bathroom and into his room with a towel wrapped around his waist. Dawson was finishing getting ready as he began to change. It was early that morning, but they both had to work and it was the first day of school for the twins.

He changed into his uniform, navy pants with a grey polo that he wore tucked in, a black belt and black work boots. Dawson was already in her uniform and had just finished fixing her hair and make-up before turning to him.

"I'll start breakfast." She said.

"Alright, I've got lunches then." He followed her to the door.

"I'll do lunches too if you wake them up." She grinned at him and he smirked, shaking his head.

They headed in opposite directions; Dawson downstairs and Casey down the hall. He knocked softly on the door before opening it and walking into the room. "Grace, time to get up." He called out as he crossed the room, opening the blind.

"Urgh, Uncle Matt." She groaned at the light and pulled the blankets over her head.

"First day of school," He announced. "Come on, Gracie, get up."

"I'm tired." She whined. "Wake Jake up first."

"You take longer to get ready." He said. "I don't want a repeat of last year's bathroom war. I want you out of the bathroom in fifteen minutes and downstairs for breakfast in thirty. You hear me?"

"Yeah, yeah," She mumbled. "I hear you."

"Then you better start moving, Grace."

Grace sighed dramatically and climbed out of bed. She grabbed a towel off the back of her door and disappeared into the bathroom. Casey headed downstairs to find Dawson was busy making the ultimate breakfast; eggs, bacon, toast, pancakes and fruit salad, she had all the bases covered. He opened the fridge and pulled out what he would need for lunches.

"Make them healthy lunches, please." Dawson said. "They both have practise today so they'll also need a snack with protein to eat before."

"I know babe." Casey nodded and smiled at her. "This isn't my first time with them."

She smiled back at him. "Okay, sorry. I just don't want them eating junk food from that school."

"Alright, what do you suggest I make them?" He knew when to give up. "Or do you want to switch?"

"Let's switch." She nodded and traded places with him. "You're on breakfast duty."

"Grace is being picky with food again." He reminded. "And Jake needs two sandwiches or he's starving, he says."

"That's because he doesn't eat enough of the right foods."

"So, what are you going to make them?"

"For Grace, a salad with spinach, arugula and romaine lettuce with grilled chicken, feta cheese, dried cranberries and some cucumber with balsamic dressing. For Jake, a large chicken wrap stuffed with vegetables and garlic sauce." She said. "And then they both get an apple with their lunch, a protein bar and drink for practise, and a bottle of water. Do you think that's enough food?"

"Between all that and this breakfast?" He raised his eyebrows. "I think they'll be just fine."

"You think I'm over doing it, don't you?" She looked at him.

"No, but I don't know who you're trying to impress. The twins love you, I love you." He had wondered why Dawson was trying so hard lately. She had insisted on making a proper breakfast and eating it together. She wanted the twins to have healthy lunches and she wanted everything to go smoothly. He knew she was trying to step into a parent role, but the twins already liked her, she didn't need their approval.

"They deserve two parents." She said. "Parents who are both equally involved, and loving, and caring, like they should be. They only have one year before college, Matt. I want them to be able to leave home knowing that there is a stable home environment for them to come back to. I want that for them, don't you?"

"Of course I do, but you don't have to stress yourself out trying to be the perfect parent." He said as he wrapped his arms around her.

"I just get so angry when I think about everything they went through as kids." She shook her head. "I want to make it up to them."

"I know what that feels like." He nodded. "But they're doing just fine, Gabby. They've been with me for two years now and I've learned that the best way to make up for their childhood is to move on from what happened. We started over and we figured out how to make it work."

"I'm still making them healthy meals." She said.

"That's fine with me." He grinned as he turned to check on the eggs and bacon. "This is done. I'm going to make sure Jake is awake."

Casey headed back upstairs. He walked passed the bathroom and knocked on the door, telling Grace she had five minutes. He moved onto the next room, again knocking before opening it and crossing the room to open the blinds.

"Breakfast is almost ready." He said. "Grace will be out of the bathroom in five minutes."

Jake snorted. "In what world?"

"I will make sure she stays on time." He said. "Are you excited for senior year?"

"Yeah, I guess." Jake said as he sat up and held his head. "If I said I didn't feel well, could I stay home and sleep?"

"Considering you were out with the guys last night and you missed curfew, not a chance." He said.

"Come on Uncle Matt, it was the last party of the summer."

"And I told you that you could go, but that you were going to school this morning." He nodded. "Were you drinking?"

"No, I'm just tired." He said before he grinned. "Maybe my appendix is about to rupture."

"That's not funny." Grace said from the doorway with a towel wrapped around her. "It sucked, trust me."

"That's because you don't know how to relax." Jake said. "Are you done in the bathroom?"

"Yeah," She nodded. "That's what I came to tell you."

"Well, look at that." Jake said as he stood up. "It's a miracle."

Grace made a face at her brother before going into her room to finish getting ready. Casey headed back downstairs and finished breakfast as Dawson finished the lunches. She set the table to breakfast, putting the fruit salad in the middle and plates of the other food around it.

To their surprise, Grace made it downstairs first and on time. She was wearing black skinny jeans with a sleeveless pink chiffon button down with a white tank top underneath. She had on black sandals, light makeup and she had diffused her hair to let her natural waves come out.

"Where's your brother?" Dawson said.

Grace shrugged as she sat down at the table. "He's still in the bathroom."

Casey and Dawson exchanged a look before he sighed. "I'll go."

"I can go." Grace offered. "I forgot my bag anyway."

Grace knocked on the bathroom door once she was back upstairs. "Are you almost done? Breakfast is ready."

Jake opened the door and quickly pulled his sister into the bathroom. "I need your help." He said as he closed the door behind her.

"With what?"

Jake had just gotten out of the shower so the bathroom was still steamy and hot. He had on shorts and he slowly took off his shirt and Grace noticed he winced. "With this." He said as he turned to show his side was covered in long cuts and scratches with some red and purple bruising.

"Whoa," Grace said. "Is that from yesterday? You said you were fine."

"I am fine." He reassured. "It just looks bad. I need to clean it but I can't really reach it."

"I think Dawson should look at it." Grace frowned. "What if you bruised a rib or something?"

"I can't ask her to help. Uncle Matt would kill me if he found out I was racing."

"You should have asked him before you started." She said. "I still can't believe you guys are all into motocross racing now."

"Come on, just help me out."

"What if it gets worse, Jake?"

"Then I'll tell them." He promised.

Grace sighed. "Fine, where's the stuff?"

Jake handed her the rubbing alcohol and winced when she applied it. She looked at the bruising and felt around his ribs in the area, but she didn't really know what she was looking for. He seemed uncomfortable and she figured if anything was broken he'd be in a lot more pain.

When she finished Jake headed into his room to change and she grabbed her bag before going downstairs. They ate breakfast together before packing their bags and leaving for school in their car. Once at school, Grace noticed Jake wince again as he got out of the car and pulled her backpack onto one shoulder.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes, I'm okay, Grace." He sighed. "You worry too much."

"You're not going to keep racing are you?"

"Why wouldn't I keep doing it?" He frowned. "It was a fluke. I got cut off around a turn and lost control because I panicked. Now, I know that's not what you do."

"Well, I don't want to be any part of it." She said. "Uncle Matt is eventually going to find out and he's not going to be happy to hear you forged his signature and lied to him all summer."

"You know, Grace, you're not exactly innocent." He said. "You think I don't know your still spending time with Tyler?"

"We're just friends." She said. "I'm dating Ben."

"Yeah, you're dating Ben." He nodded. "But you're still seeing Tyler. I see you two at parties and I know you hang out with him alone sometimes."

"So, what?" She stopped and stepped in front of him. "You're going to blackmail me now?"

"No, but you shouldn't judge me about not being honest with Matt, when you're not telling him everything either." He said. "I cover for you just as much as you cover for me."

"My secret won't get me seriously injured or killed, Jake." She said. "Just because you don't like Tyler,"

"I like Tyler, Grace. He was one of my best friends." He interrupted. "But I can't just forget what he did to you. Maybe I could forgive him and be his friend again but I'd never feel comfortable with you being with him."

Grace shook her head. "I don't want to argue with you about this, Jake. I'm dating Ben, so it doesn't even matter."

"You're forcing that relationship and you know it." He said. "You think he's good for you because everyone approves and everyone likes him so it feels right but you're not happy, Grace."

"You think I can't read you like a book?" She said. "Rachel made you happy but you broke up with her because she got too close and she had the power to hurt you, so you hurt her first."

Jake smirked and nodded. "Maybe we should stop before we hurt each other."

"Yeah," Grace nodded as they walked to class. "Good idea."

**Please review! I'm hoping everyone made it over to this story and is still following along. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Do not read this if you haven't seen the season three premiere.**

**Seriously, major spoilers again, you have been warned.**

**Okay, first of all, I am so not happy about Shay's death. This really sucks because I had big plans for her in this story and because she was one of my favourite characters on the show. That being said, I am going to write her death into this story. But since I haven't mentioned her for a few chapters, I'm going to write her death as looking back to keep up with the time line of the show and my story. However, if you want me to write about her death and the immediate reactions, I will do a flash back chapter, just let me know.**

Grace headed into the firehouse after school that day. Jake was still at basketball practise so she took the car and said she'd pick him up later. The house was unusually quiet, she was greeted by the guys the same as always, but it just wasn't the same. She headed into the kitchen first and was happy to see Mills behind the counter making food.

"Well, look whose back." She smiled at him.

"Hey," He grinned. "No cheerleading practise?"

"I wasn't feeling very cheery today." She said. "I stayed for the meeting but not the tryouts."

He nodded. "Do you want a snack?"

"No, I'm okay." She shook her head. "Where's Matt?"

"He's in his office." Mills said. "Paperwork."

She nodded, silently thanking him, and headed towards her Uncle. She saw him at his desk, working away with the door closed. She knocked slightly before opening the door and sticking her head in. He looked up briefly to see who was there, but he kept working.

"Uncle Matt?" She asked.

"Yeah, baby?" He said without looking up.

"Are you busy?"

"Not for you," He looked at her then, frowning as he studied her. "What's wrong?"

"I feel like I should tell you something but you're going to be mad." Grace said as she stepped into his office, closing the door.

"Well, now you have my full attention." He turned his chair to face her with a worried expression.

"I used to talk to Shay a lot, like a lot more than you knew." She said as she leaned against the door with her arms crossed. "Some things I just can't talk to you about, you know, girl stuff. Christie is too motherly for certain topics and Gabby is more of a mother figure now, which I love, but it changed our relationship. Shay was like that older sister, no matter what I said, there was no judgement."

"Grace," He said gently. "What's going on?"

"I forgot today. Something happened and I needed to talk to her. So, I picked up the phone to call her and for a minute I forgot what happened, but then, oh, then I remembered." She shook her head, the tears falling. "I really miss her."

"I know, sweetheart." He nodded. "We all do."

"She was always there for me, Uncle Matt. I feel like I lost a huge part of myself because now I don't have that person I used to turn to when it felt like I couldn't talk to anyone."

It was the first time Grace said much about her death. Casey knew she was grieving, but she hadn't really talked about the loss yet, no one had. "You can talk to me, Gracie." He said. "About anything."

"Okay," She sighed, trying to pull herself together. "It's not about me, it's about Jake."

Casey nodded. "Why am I not surprised?"

"All the guys started racing this summer," She said.

"Racing?" He asked with raised eyebrows. "Like cars?"

"No, dirt bikes, motocross racing." She explained. "It seemed safe enough and with what happened with Mandy, and then Shay, and with Kelly kind of disappearing, he said he needed to blow off some steam."

Casey sighed. "What happened?"

"He crashed on the weekend. He said it was no big deal but his side is pretty beat up." She said. "Someone needs to look at it but he's not going to tell you or Gabby."

"So, you're telling me." He nodded.

"I would have told Shay, she would have helped and never said anything." Grace said.

"How often did she do that?"

"A lot." Grace smiled slightly. "She wanted us to have someone we could always come to, an adult with a judgement free zone."

Casey smiled. "Sounds like something Shay would do."

"Is this why Gabby is overcompensating lately?" She asked. "Because of what happened with Shay?"

"You noticed that, huh?" Casey shrugged. "I think she's trying to keep busy and she wants to be there for you guys too."

"Is she okay?"

Casey looked at her for a moment before nodding. "Yeah, Grace, she's okay."

"What about Kelly?" She asked.

"He needs some time." He said. "Shay was his best friend and his roommate. There's a lot of memories for him at work and at home."

"He won't answer my calls." She said and Casey could hear the disappointment in her voice.

"He will when he's ready." Casey stood up and slung an arm around her shoulders, leading her out the door. "Come on, let's go for a drive."

Casey picked Jake up from practise and drove out to Severide's cabin with the twins. He thought about going alone, but they needed to see he was okay, and he needed to see them too. Severide looked up when he saw the truck but continued chopping the wood.

"Stay here," Casey said to the twins. "Just let me talk to him alone for a minute."

The twins couldn't really hear what was being said, they weren't talking loud enough. Casey came back to the truck rather quickly, and the twins wondered what happened and why the conversation was so short. But then he grabbed the call log Boden kept and he tried again.

"The badges on the wall, at the academy, Andy's, Shay's, they don't represent death. They represent the lives we saved." Casey looked back at the truck at the twins. "They keep asking about you. If you're okay, where you are, why you aren't answering their calls. I don't know how much longer I can tell them that you just need time."

Severide nodded and headed towards the truck. He knew they were going to take it personally; they were kids with abandonment issues from their parents. He went around to the passenger side as Jake rolled down the window.

"Hey," Severide said as he leaned on the window.

"Hey," They echoed; unsure how to approach the situation.

Severide sensed their uneasiness. He opened the door and gestured for them to get out. "Come here, guys." He hugged them, one at a time, before he frowned. "Listen to me. Shay was my best friend and I miss her very much. I need a break, but it is not personal. You two are still very important to me."

"We know." Grace said as Jake nodded.

Severide nodded before changing the subject. "When's the first game?"

"Next Friday," Jake said. "Are you coming?"

"I wouldn't miss it." He said seriously.

OOOOO

Casey and Dawson came in the house the next morning as Grace was coming down the stairs, dressed and ready for school. "Where's Jake?"

"In his room, he just got out of the shower."

Casey nodded and headed upstairs. He knocked once before opening the door. Jake was shirtless, standing in front of his dresser mirror, trying to see his side and back. He turned, startled, when the door opened and quickly scrambled to throw on a shirt. Casey crossed his arms and leaned on the door frame.

"Come here." He said calmly.

"Why?" Jake asked nervously as he took a step back.

Casey sighed and crossed the room. He grabbed Jake's upper arm and spun him to the side before lifting up his shirt. He frowned at the angry purple bruises and the long scratches on Jake's side and back that covered his hip and ribs.

"What is this from?" He asked as he lowered his shirt.

Jake sighed. "It's from motocross racing."

"How long have you been keeping this from me?"

"All summer." He mumbled.

"Jake." Casey scolded. "What happened?"

"I got cut off around a turn." He said. "I'm okay, Uncle Matt."

"You're going to let Gabby look at this and clean it up." He said. "And then we are going to talk about this later."

Jake nodded and followed his Uncle downstairs. He waited in the bathroom as Casey went into the kitchen to get Dawson. Casey paused just outside the kitchen and smiled when he heard laughter. It was the first time in a while he had heard the two of them laughing together.

"She said that?" Dawson asked.

"Yeah, the power has seriously gone to her head." Grace laughed.

"Who are you talking about?" Casey frowned.

"Claire, she's taking her job as senior cheer captain a little too far this year."

"Well, wasn't her sister the same way?" Dawson said. "She gave you all diet pills two years ago."

"Must run in the family." Casey said. "Hey, Jake is in the bathroom waiting for you."

Dawson nodded and went into the bathroom to meet Jake. He slipped his shirt off and she looked at his side before sighing and raising her eyebrows at him. "I don't know where to start." She said as she pulled out some supplies to clean the wounds. "I don't like that you're riding dirt bikes, I don't like that you lied to us about doing it, and I really don't like that you kept this injury from us."

Jake sighed. He didn't have a problem with Dawson being a mother figure towards him, but sometimes she was too good at it. "I know."

"Then why did you do it?"

He winched as she started cleaning it. "If I would have asked you if I could start motocross racing, what would you have said?"

"No," She answered quickly.

"Exactly!" He said. "I couldn't exactly tell you about this when you didn't know anything about the bikes in the first place."

"Yes, you could have. Just like you could have come to us and told us this was something you wanted to do and we would have talked about it. But you chose not to tell us, Jake. That's a big difference." She said as she finished cleaning. "I'm going to check your ribs, breath when I tell you to."

"What's the verdict?" Casey interrupted.

"Bruised ribs, and some cuts, but nothing too deep and nothing is broken." She said as she handed Jake his shirt back. "Go eat before you're late."

Jake nodded and slipped out of the bathroom. Casey grinned at Dawson as she cleaned up. She was clearly frustrated and not happy with Jake at the moment. "Sometimes you have to count to ten in your head."

"I'd have to count to one hundred for that." She shook her head. "He didn't tell us because he said he knew we would have said no. So, why would you go and do it, if you knew we wouldn't like it?"

"Gabby," He smiled. "Welcome to parenthood."


	4. Chapter 4

Grace woke up early that morning. It was hard for her to sleep in a new place. Even though she had her own bed, none of her stuff was unpacked and her new room didn't feel like hers yet. She felt like she was on vacation and all she wanted to do was go home. They had planned to move for months, but after Shay died, more change was not what they needed.

She headed into the kitchen in pajama bottoms and a hoodie with her hair in a messy bun. "Hi," She mumbled.

"Well, good morning sunshine." Casey grinned at her. "How did you sleep?"

"I didn't." She said as she reached for the coffee.

"Hey, no." Casey frowned. "I don't want you drinking coffee."

"I didn't want to move and that still happened." She said. "So, compromise?"

"Nice try." Casey grinned.

"Worth a shot." She shrugged and grabbed some orange juice out of the fridge.

"Are you really that unhappy about the move?"

"I don't know. I don't like change." She sighed. "I'm sure I'll get used to it."

"If you unpacked it would probably help."

"I have a lot of stuff." She said. "It's like staring into the abyss."

"That's because your Uncle spoils you." Dawson said, coming into the kitchen with a grin. "The amount of clothes you have is ridiculous."

"Don't blame me for that." Casey said. "Christie shows up with bags of clothes way too often."

"She likes to buy our love," Jake smirked, coming into the kitchen that morning. "And I'm okay with that."

"Are you ready for your first game tonight?" Dawson asked. "How's your side?"

"It's fine." Jake said. "I'm all good."

"Jake, if it's still sore you shouldn't be playing." She said. "Let me apply some pressure."

"That's a good idea." Casey nodded.

"No, guys, I'm fine." He said.

"Jake," Casey started but was interrupted by the doorbell. He sighed, signaling that he'd continue the conversation in a minute.

"Saved by the bell?" Jake grinned at him.

Casey grinned back and went to answer the door for Severide. "Hey, come on in."

"Nice place," He said, walking inside and following Casey to the kitchen. "Hey guys."

"Are you still coming tonight?" Jake asked him, trying to change the subject.

"Yeah, I'll be there."

"But you won't be there unless you let me check your ribs." Dawson said to Jake.

"What's going on?" Severide asked, looking between the two.

"Jake has been motocross racing all summer." Dawson announced. "He crashed last weekend and bruised his ribs."

"I didn't know you were doing that," He said.

"Oh, none of us knew." Dawson said. "He lied about it."

"Oh my God, will you let it go?" Jake said in frustration, rolling his eyes.

"Hey," Casey said with a frown.

"I'm tired of her constantly bringing it up." He said. "This is exactly why I didn't tell you."

"And that's the problem Jake." She argued. "You don't get to keep things from us, especially when you know we wouldn't approve."

"Will you stop with the overbearing mother act?" Jake said. "You're not my mother."

"Jake, that's enough." Casey gave him a look. "Come with me."

Jake sighed and followed him across the apartment to his room. "Uncle Matt,"

"Close the door." He said. Jake sighed again and closed the door. "I know that things haven't been easy for you this summer with what happened to Mandy, and breaking up with Rachel. Losing Shay, and moving to a new place, it's a lot of change. I get it, I do, but you do not get to take it out on us. And you don't get to talk to Gabby like that, not ever."

"Okay, fine." He said.

Casey continued to look at him for a moment before speaking again. "Alright, let me see." Jake took his shirt off and let Casey check his ribs. "Does that hurt?"

"Yeah," Jake said, wincing. "But I want to play."

"Jake, if you get hit or someone runs into you on the court," He shook his head. 

"It's the only thing I have left that's still mine." Jake looked at him. "Please, don't take that away too."

"Listen to me," Casey put his hands on his nephew's shoulders. "I'm still here, Gabby and Grace are still here. We're still a family. We aren't going anywhere. You have got to let go of this guilt about Mandy and you have to stop pushing everyone away."

"I know." Jake nodded. "It's just, every time I think I've gotten past one thing, another thing happens or something reminds me about it."

"Hey, it's going to be okay." Casey reassured.

OOOOO

Grace was with Rachel and Claire in the locker room, getting ready before the big game. It was the first home game of the year and it was a big deal to their school. They had a pep rally, then the game, and then a bonfire after for the cheerleaders and the team.

"Isn't it weird how much things can change in a year?" Rachel said as they stood in front of the mirror; fixing their hair and putting make-up. "This time last year, I was with Jake, you were with Tyler and Claire was with Nick. And now all six of us are single."

"I feel like I was a lot more excited for these games last year." Grace said. "It's like the hype of being a senior ruined it. This is supposed to be our best year."

"Well, the problem is those boys." Claire said. "We were excited to watch them play and cheer on our boyfriends and now it's different."

"Am I the only one that misses being with them?" Rachel asked. "Call it a cliché, but I liked being the cheerleader dating one of the stars of the basketball team."

"I miss it too." Claire admitted.

"Well, aren't you and Nick on a break?" Grace asked.

"A pretty extended break." Rachel said. "But yeah, you two always break up but you always get back together."

"I know but we've been broken up for a while this time and it didn't bother me until we came back to school." Claire sighed. "Now suddenly, I really want him back."

"Summer flings are over." Grace said. "Back to reality."

"What about you and Ben?" Claire frowned. "What are you guys?"

"We're dating," Grace said slowly. "We're not official or exclusive, or anything."

"We all know you're still into Tyler." Claire said. "And he's obviously still into you."

"I wish it were that simply." Grace said.

"So, what are we going to do?" Rachel said. "I'm not going to sit here and feel sorry for myself and I won't let my two best friends do it either."

"I say that tonight at the bonfire, we show those boys our full court press." Claire grinned.

Later that night the bonfire party was in full swing, celebrating the team's win. Claire wasted no time in setting her sights on Nick, but they had been on and off for four years and it never took much to get them back together. All she had to do was wear tight jeans, a low cut top and flirt with him.

Grace still wasn't sure what she wanted to do. In truth, she wanted Tyler, but she wanted things back to the way they were at the beginning and she didn't think she'd ever get that back. Rachel was too shy to make an aggressive move and Grace didn't blame her. Jake had really hurt her this summer, but despite that, Rachel still had feelings for him. Grace knew Jake was starting to come around and she decided to help Rachel.

"I think you should talk to her." Grace said when she noticed Jake was watching Rachel.

"What am I supposed to say?" Jake asked. "I've been so horrible to her that I wouldn't even know where to start."

"Start with hello," Grace smiled. "And then maybe apologize."

"You think it's that easy?" He frowned.

"Love is blind." Grace said, she knew Rachel wouldn't take much convincing.

"Hey," Jake grabbed her arm as she was walking away. "Love is blind, be careful."

She nodded, she didn't have to say anything. There was no use in denying it, or trying to convince him otherwise, he knew her too well. The reason she was able to forgive Tyler and see past his faults was because she was still in love with him.

Grace headed outside. She needed a minute to get away from it all, to clear her head and try to think. She was so consumed in her thoughts she didn't hear him coming up behind her and she jumped when she heard his voice.

"Hey," He smiled. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."

"It's fine." She shrugged. "That's what I get for zoning out."

"Did you need a break from it too?" He asked. "Now that I'm not drinking I realize how annoying everyone who is drinking can get."

"Yeah, just a bit." She smirked. "So, how are you, with everything?"

"Good." He nodded. "I think hitting rock bottom actually made me a better person. My game is better and my grades are a lot better, and I like to think I'm a better friend now."

"You have a better attitude." Grace nodded. "And you seem happier."

"I am happy, for the most part anyway." He said. "Are you?"

Grace looked at him before nodding her head, a smile playing on her lips. "Yeah, I think so."

OOOOO

Grace knocked on their bedroom door early that morning. She had spent the night at Claire's for the cheerleader sleepover and just got home and finished taking a shower. Her room was still filled with boxes so she just slipped on the few things she had unpacked; yoga leggings, wool socks and slipper boots, a grey V-neck t-shirt and a red plaid long sleeve button down. Her hair was up in a top knot bun, still wet from the shower.

She heard Dawson call her in and she opened the door. She could hear the shower running and Dawson was lying in bed, admiring her ring. She smiled at Grace, holding her hand up and Grace grinned back and excitedly jumped into the bed beside her. "Finally!"

"I know, I know." Dawson said. "We took our time."

"It was like your relationship was in slow motion." Grace said, flopping down in the bed beside her.

"How was the sleep over?" She asked.

"I know it's tradition and all, but that many girls should never be allowed alone in one room." Grace said.

"Drama?"

"Oh, so much." Grace shook her head. "If the basketball team wasn't a part of the bonfire I think it would have been a disaster."

"Sounds like high school." Dawson laughed. "Are you going out with Ben tonight?"

"I think so." They always went out on Saturday night.

"You don't sound very excited." She frowned. "Does this have something to do with Tyler?"

"Ben is a really good guy. He plans dates every week and he's so nice and romantic and such a gentleman." She sighed. "But there's no spark between us. Tyler was adventurous and spontaneous and I could be stupid and silly around him."

"Grace, you dated Tyler for a year and a half, you were comfortable around him. You could be yourself and that's a big part of relationships." She said. "Maybe you just need more time with Ben, or maybe it's too soon after Tyler."

"Tyler and I had sparks right away." She said. "I miss that, I miss him and I miss us. And that's not fair to Ben."

"Are you thinking about breaking up with Ben?"

"I don't know. I'm so confused." She shook her head. "What do you think?"

"I think your head says Ben, because he's a good guy and he seems like the right choice. He's the safe choice." She said. "But your heart wants Tyler, and the problem isn't you or him, it's all the other people in your life."

"Uncle Matt would never go for it." She mumbled. "What do I do?"

"I can't tell you that, Grace. You're going to have to work it out yourself." She said. "But, I will say that as much as I want to protect you from the people in this world, you have to learn how to do that yourself."

"Tell that to Jake." She said. "He seems to think he's my personal body guard."

"Did Jake come home with you?"

"No, I told him I'd pick him up later." She said. "Is Kelly here?"

"I'm pretty sure he spent the night with Lindsay."

"Oooh," Grace grinned. "I like them together."

"Yeah, me too." She nodded.

"Well, I'm sure Kelly will be happy to hear you approve of his love life." Casey said, standing in the door way of their bathroom. He sat down on the bed in front of them. "So, should we stay in and unpack or go out for breakfast?"

Dawson and Grace exchanged a look before answering together. "Go out for breakfast."

"We're never going to finish unpacking." Casey smiled as he nudged Grace. "You need to start."

"I have too much stuff." She whined. "I get overwhelmed trying to decide where to start."

Casey shook his head, smiling. "Go get ready," He looked at Dawson. "Both of you."

"Oh, you think you're the boss of me now that we're engaged?" She said, sitting up and leaning towards him.

"No, you're always the boss." He smiled.

"That's right." She grinned as she kissed him.

"And bye." Grace said, getting off the bed and heading toward the door.

"Hey," Casey called after her. "I'm assuming your brother is not here?" She nodded. "Call him and tell him we'll pick him up on the way and he better not be hung over, and if he is, he better hide it well."

Grace smirked. "You got it."

She left the room just as Jake was coming in the front door. "Rachel drove me home." He said, knowing she was about to ask.

"Oh, she did?" Grace said curiously. "So, you talked?"

He nodded. "We did."

"And?" She promoted.

"And, it's none of your business." He grinned at her. "We were just talking."

"You know she's going to tell me."

"Yeah, probably." He shrugged, walking towards his room. "And Tyler will probably tell me everything once you're done talking to him."

Grace frowned. "What?"

"He's waiting for you outside." Jake smirked.

Grace walked to the door, opening it and heading out into the hallway. Tyler was standing a few doors down and he smiled nervously when he saw her. "Hey."

"Hey," She said. "What are you doing here?"

"After we talked last night, I started thinking about us." He said. "I miss us, and I know you're with someone else, but we were friends first, remember?"

"Couldn't forget if I tried." She smiled slightly.

"I want you to be happy, Grace, I mean that." He nodded. "I heard he's a great guy."

"Yeah," Grace said. "But he's not you."

"What?" He asked softly.

"He's a good guy; he's nice, he's a gentleman, he's romantic, and I should be happy being with him. But he's not you." She shrugged with her arms crossed. "He doesn't make me laugh like you do. He doesn't surprise me and take me on adventures like you did. I can't talk to him for hours like I talk to you. And there are parts of my life he's just never going to understand." She paused and wiped a few tears away. "But you walked away from me once already and you hurt me, twice. The problem isn't that I don't know what I want, the problem is that I'm afraid of what I want."

**A/N: I've had a few people ask about wanting the twins to start calling Casey 'Dad'. I'll let you guys vote on it in the reviews. I go back and forth with the idea so I'll leave the decision up to you.**

**VOTE: Should the twins start calling Casey 'Dad'?**

**Also, review and let me know what you think about the idea of Grace and Tyler getting back together.**

_**Reviews make writers happy. Happy writers write more often.**_


	5. Chapter 5

"What is this?" Severide asked, coming around the corner towards the apartment.

"We're just talking." Grace sighed and crossed her arms. This is exactly what she was worried about.

"Well, I think you should wrap it up." He said, glancing at Tyler.

"Yeah, got it." Tyler nodded. "I'll see you at school, Grace."

Grace nodded and waited until he went through the door for the stairs before she turned back to Severide with a heavy glare. "Why did you do that?"

"Why are you talking to him?" He countered. "After everything he did and all the pain he caused you, why on earth would you want to put yourself through that again?"

"Because I love him." She said and her voice cracked.

"What is it about the bad ones?" He said. "Why do girls, who I think are so awesome and special, date people who only tear them down and get them into trouble?"

"Are you talking about me or Shay?" Grace said carefully, unsure how he would react to hearing her name. "You know what she told me, Kelly? That some people do change, but unless you give them a second chance, you'll never know."

Severide was quiet for a moment. "I don't want to see you get hurt again."

"I know." She said. "But you have to trust that I will make the right choices for me."

OOOOO

Grace was at a college party with Ben that night. She tried to have a good time, she really did, but she just didn't fit into his world. He spent most of the night with the guys, goofing off and having a good time and she just felt left out. He tried his best to include her, but she just wasn't in the mood.

She was always amazed at how different Ben acted around his friends. With her, he was this romantic gentleman, but around his friends, he was the typical guy, showing off for his friends. He was still great to her, but she didn't like how his attitude changed and she didn't like most of his friends.

She stepped out into the hall for some air and found herself calling for a ride home. She tried to explain it to Ben but they got into a fight about it. He had been drinking and he didn't understand why she wanted to leave, so she waited outside alone.

"Thanks for picking me up." She said as she climbed into his car.

"Another college party?" Mills grinned at her. "Really?"

"Yeah, I know." She sighed.

"Hey, I was kidding," He nudged her as he began to drive. "What happened?"

"I just didn't want to be there." She sighed. "Besides, I need talk to you about something because I need advice and opinions of someone who isn't going to act like a parent."

"Well, what are big brothers for?" He smiled at her. "What's wrong?"

She shrugged, and then she broke down. "He's not who I thought he was."

Mills looked at her and pulled over, putting the car in park and turning towards her. "Did he do something to you?" He demanded.

"No, we just got in a fight. He's so different around his friends and it just makes me wonder which part of him is the act." She shook her head, trying to pull it together. "And he's not who I want. I'm in love with Tyler, but everyone hates him and I don't know what do to."

"Okay, hey," He soothed as he ran a hand down the back of her head. "Relationships are hard, especially at your age, but there's one thing that never changes. If you're not happy, it's not a relationship worth being in."

"What if I make the wrong choice?"

Mills shrugged, his mouth in a tight line. "It's a risk you're going to have to be willing to take."

"So, you don't think I'm crazy for wanting to get back together with Tyler?"

"No, there's something to be said about that first love." He said. "But make no mistake about it, if he hurts you again, I will hurt him."

Grace smiled. "You'll probably going to have to get in line for that."

OOOOO

Jake walked into the firehouse that morning with Casey, Dawson and Severide. His school was continuing the co-op program, letting students take one day a week off to work in a chosen field for experience, but only if they kept good grades in their classes. Principle Smith told Jake personally that he thought the program was good for him and that there was a very noticeable improvement in his school work once he started the placement last year.

This year, Casey thought it would be a good idea to let Jake ride with Squad a few times and have Severide put Jake through some drills. He wanted Jake to see all sides of the job and Casey knew this would also help Severide adjust to being back at work without Shay. Jake was pretty excited about it, although he wanted to be on truck, Squad did some pretty cool things.

Jake hung back in the garage when he got a call from Rachel. The rest of them continued into the house when he signaled that he'd be a minute. Things were still a little rough with them, but they were getting there. They only talked for a few minutes, trying to make plans but when Jake hung up, he felt that feeling again.

Sylvie was in the garage, checking supplies on the ambulance when they came in. She still felt like an outsider and was trying to work her way into their very close group. She waited until Jake hung up before walking over to him. "Hey, you must be Lt. Casey's son." She smiled. "You guys look so much alike."

Jake grinned. "I've heard that before, I'm Jake."

"Sylvie." She said and they shook hands. "You have a twin, right?"

"Yeah, Grace," He nodded. "She'll probably be here later."

"Jake," Dawson called, coming into the garage. "Mills is looking for you."

"Nice to meet you." Jake said to Sylvie and left the room.

"Is he also your kid?" She asked once he was gone.

"No, not biologically." Dawson said.

"So, was Casey married before?" She frowned. "He must have had them really young."

"It's a long story." Dawson wasn't sure how to explain their story. She hadn't found the best way to keep it short and it wasn't really her story to tell. "The twins are Casey's niece and nephew but he adopted them."

"Oh," She said surprised. "You'd never know that looking at you guys. Jake looks like a mini version of him."

Dawson smiled. "I know."

"And Grace kind of looks like a mix of you two."

"You think?" Dawson frowned as she thought about it.

"Yeah, you guys make a pretty cute family."

OOOOO

Jake was in the squad truck with Severide when he saw the accident. He heard Severide call out a mayday on the radio and panic ran through him. As soon as the truck stopped, Jake was out and running towards the accident.

"Dad!" He yelled, trying to climb up the truck. He didn't even realize he was saying it. He was terrified. After what happened to Mandy, then Shay, the thought of losing someone else was unbearable. "Dad!"

Casey could hear yelling outside the truck. It sounded like Jake was yelling 'Dad', but he couldn't be sure. He might just be hearing things, but it made him want to get to his child much more in that moment. But this wasn't the time to acknowledge it or talk about it. It could have been the heat of the moment, and he understood that, but he still felt very honoured.

Severide ran after Jake and pulled him back from climbing up the truck. "Jake, just wait."

"No, I need to see if he's okay." Jake demanded as Severide held him back.

"Jake, I got it." He reassured and climbed up onto the truck to look in. "Casey, you alright?"

"Yeah," He said. "Just hurt."

"Alright, we'll get you out."

Severide helped him out and Casey climbed down. "I'm okay, Jake." He assured him, grabbing him in a hug. He could see the worry in Jake's eyes and he was fighting back tears. Casey knew he was having a hard time with this one. He pulled back, putting his hands on his shoulders and gave a nod, which Jake returned. "I have to help out."

"Dad," Jake called as Casey turned to walk away.

Casey turned around, that time he definitely heard it. "Yeah?"

"You're my Dad." He said, as he took a shaky breath, fresh tears still in his eyes. He wanted to make sure it was okay to call him that. He had wanted to ever since Mandy died.

"I know." Casey nodded, confirming it as he put his hand on his shoulder. He waited until Jake nodded back before giving him shoulder a squeeze and walking away.

Later at the hospital Jake was waiting around with Dawson as the firefighters met. She was pacing, worried about the guys and worried about Casey, she had only got to see him briefly at the scene. It was enough to know he was okay, but not enough to feel relief. Jake watched her and she offered him a reassuring smile.

"I didn't mean it." He said suddenly. "The other day, when I said you weren't my mother, I didn't mean it like it sounded."

"It's okay, Jake." She said.

"No it's not." He shook his head. "I've never had a good relationship with my Mother. She loved drugs more than she loved us and that's something I just can't forgive her for. So, it's a good thing you're not my mother. But I didn't mean to snap at you."

"Jake, I understand."

"You don't, not really anyway." He said. "I never got to know what a real mother is supposed to act like until you moved in. I'm still trying to get used to it but that's on me. It has nothing to do with you. I'm really glad you act like a mother, Gabby, because I need one."

"Are you trying to make me cry?" She asked as she hugged him.

"Where is he?" Grace demanded, worried when she saw them hugging.

"I'm right here." Casey said from behind her.

Grace turned and jumped into his arms. "I heard the call." She mumbled as he held her.

"I'm fine." Casey smiled as he put her down. "See? Just a little banged up."

"Yeah," Grace nodded. "I just needed to see for myself."

"Alright," He nodded and kissed her head. "I'll see you at the house later."

Grace left with Antonio as the firefighters began to clear out. He dropped her back off at the station, he had to go to a scene, there had been some murders and things were getting out of control. Of course she couldn't go with him, so she stayed in the unit.

The only people up there were Nadia, Halstead, Burgees and the new cop. Grace did some paperwork, they would write her notes and she would type it up, it saved them time and gave her experience. But she was distracted today, between what happened with Casey and what was going on with Halstead it was nearly impossible to concentrate.

"Hey," Halstead interrupted her. "Is everyone okay?"

"Driver of 66 is in pretty bad shape. One of their other guys has a broken leg, another with a broken arm." She sighed. "Everyone else is just banged up."

"And, are you alright?" He asked. "That couldn't have been easy to go through."

"Yeah," Grace looked at him and hesitated. "Don't get killed, okay?"

He smirked. "I'll try not to."

"I mean it." She said sincerely. "After Shay," She shook her head. "I don't want to do that again."

"Yeah, a line of duty death is hard to handle."

"Yeah, they are, but it's not that." She said. "I can't lose someone I know, someone I care about, not again."

"I'll be careful, I promise." He said. "You know you're like everyone's little sister, mine included."

"Yes, and I'm okay with that." She grinned and answered her phone. "Hey,"

"Hey, Boden is sending Dad and the guys from truck home." Jake said. "Want to go for lunch with us?"

"Uh, yeah," Grace nodded with a frown. "Did you say Dad?"

"Nothing became more apparent today than that. I saw the accident, Grace, it was bad." He said. "I didn't even know if he was okay and I was yelling for him and that's what came out. It's true, you say he's our Dad all the time."

"Yeah, I know." She sighed. "Text me when you're outside."

Jake hung up with a frown. He wasn't sure what was going through Grace's head but she was definitely over thinking this one. He was surprised she wasn't the first one to start calling Casey, Dad. He figured it must have something to do with their father, something that was holding her back from giving him that title. As he headed down the hall towards Casey's office and saw him and Dawson talking. He hung back for a few moments, letting them have their moment.

"Boden's sending you guys home?" Dawson asked Casey.

"Yeah, he looks out for his people." He said. "And I think I need to spend some time with the twins after this."

"That's probably a good idea." She nodded. "Hey, was Jake calling you Dad?"

"Yeah," He smiled. "I thought I was hearing things, and then I thought it was just heat of the moment because he was yelling it when I was still in the truck, but then he said it again, and he meant it."

"How does that make you feel?" Dawson asked.

"I can't even explain it to you. They are my kids, no matter how it came to be, they're mine. And I know they think of me as like a father to them, but to hear him say it," Casey shook his head. "It felt real."

"I'm surprised it hasn't happened early." Dawson smiled. "You deserve that title and the recognition, Matt."

Casey smiled at her and nodded as Jake approached. "Do you want to stay?"

Jake shrugged. "I could use the day off. I told Grace we'd pick her up for lunch."

Casey spent the day with the twins, they hadn't done that in a long time. He noticed something was off about Grace and he wasn't sure what was bothering her. He wondered if Jake calling him 'Dad' was putting pressure on her, or if she felt uncomfortable. He also wondered if it was boy troubles, he knew about Tyler but he wasn't ready to address it just yet.

When they got back to the apartment, Casey started dinner as Grace did her homework at the table in the kitchen. Jake went to pick Rachel up from school and was still out with her so Casey took the time to try and talk to her about some things.

"Are you okay?" He asked. "You seem quiet."

"Yeah, I'm just trying to make sense of Shakespeare." She nodded. "I'm Math and Science smart, but English, not so much."

Casey smirked. "Well, I can't really help you with that one, I hated English."

She smiled. "Must be where I get it from."

"Listen, I know you've noticed that Jake started calling me Dad, and you've probably talked about it with him." Casey said, sitting down at the table with her. "But I don't want you to feel any kind of pressure, if you're not ready, or you don't want to, it's fine."

"It's not that." Grace sighed and put the book down, trying to figure out the best way to explain herself. "My whole life, having a Dad meant someone that's never there for me, that constantly lets me down and that has hurt me, many times. I don't have good memories with him. But I have great memories with you. And it wasn't until we came to live with you that I saw what a Dad was supposed to be like."

"Look, Grace, I love you, no matter what." He said. "I just want you to know that it's okay if you call me that and it's okay if you don't."

Grace was quiet for a few moments as she played her with cell phone. "Call me."

He frowned. "What?"

"Just call me." Casey pulled his phone out of his pocket and called her cell. He waited as he phone began ringing and she turned the phone so he could see that the screen read, 'Dad', and he smiled. "You are my Dad, I tell everyone that, it's not some secret. And it would be really nice to have that name mean something positive for once."

**A/N: We will call this the test chapter for the twins calling Casey 'Dad'. If you don't like the idea, now is the time to speak up.**

_**Reviews make writers happy. Happy writers write more often.**_


	6. Chapter 6

Grace and Jake were making breakfast that morning, trying to be as quiet as possible as Casey and Dawson got ready. It was her first day and they wanted to do something nice for them both. Grace was making pancakes and Jake was trying to fry bacon but he kept burning himself as it cooked.

"Damn it," He mumbled as he finished flipping the bacon and stepped away from the pan.

"Turn it down." Grace whispered.

"Why are you whispering?" He said. "You don't think they can smell this?"

"Even if they can smell it, they probably don't think it's coming from here." She said. "We never cook."

"And for good reason." Jake said as the pan spat at him again when he reached over to turn it down.

"Are you done with the eggs?" She asked.

"Yeah, they're done." He said, pulling them off the stove and putting the pan on a hot plate on the table. "What about the pancakes?"

"Just about." She flipped the last few left on the griddle. She grabbed the fruit salad and placed it on the table as Jake transferred the bacon from the pan to a plate and also put it on the table. Grace looked at the table, filled with orange juice, coffee, plates, silvery ware, glasses, mugs, and the food. "Are we missing anything?"

"Just the pancakes." He said.

"Right, they're done." She said, reaching over the griddle to grab the plate and catching the inside of her wrist on the edge. She quickly pulled her arm back and stepped away from the counter. For the small amount of time her wrist pressed against the side of the pan, it sure did hurt a lot.

"What happened?" He said. "Did you just burn yourself?"

"Yeah, that really hurt." She said as she looked at her wrist. There was an angry straight red line across it. "I'm fine, here, take the pancakes." She said as she pulled the last few off and handed him the plate to put on the table.

"What's this?" Dawson said with a smile as she came into the kitchen with Casey right behind her.

"We wanted you to have a good first day." Grace smiled.

"So, you cooked?" Casey said with a grin, raising his eyebrows.

"Yeah, and we have the scars to prove it." He said. "Damn bacon almost burned me to death with all its spitting."

"Well, we appreciate your pain." Dawson said as she sat down, the others following her.

"As long as it tastes good." Casey added, still grinning at the twins. "Can you pass the coffee?"

Grace reached for the pot and placed it down in front of him. "Here you go."

"Grace," He frowned when he saw her wrist. "Did you burn yourself?"

"Oh, yeah," She said as she looked at her wrist. "I reached over the pan for a plate and my wrist pressed against it."

"Let me see it." Dawson said, a look of concern coming over her face. Grace turned and placed her arm in her hand. "When did you do this?"

"Like two minutes ago." She said.

"Go run it under water." She said. "I'll get the first aid kit."

"It's fine." She insisted. "It doesn't need to ruin this nice breakfast we made to celebrate your first day."

"It's a first degree burn and it needs to be treated." She said, getting up and leaving the room.

"Dad," Grace whined, looking to him for help. He was still getting used to the twins calling him Dad, sometimes it still surprised him and a part of him hoped that feeling of honour never wore off.

"Come on, Gracie, it will only take a few minutes." Casey got up and ran the water in the sink, not too cold, but cool enough to take the heat out of the burn. Grace sighed but went over to the sink. He held her wrist, looking at the burn briefly with a frown before he placed her arm under the water. She leaned against his arm and he looked down at her. "Does it hurt?"

She nodded. "A bit."

"It's minor, but it still needs to be looked after." He said before grinning. "Or you'll have a scar."

"Are you implying that I'm vain?" She grinned back at him.

"Okay, let's get this done so you're not late for school." Dawson said, coming back into the kitchen.

Casey turned the water off and Grace let Dawson take her arm. She dried it off, cleaned the burn and wrapped her wrist. "Well, this looks fashionable." Grace said, holding up her bandaged wrist. "It looks like I'm wearing a wristband."

"You can pretend you're an athlete." Jake joked.

"I am an athlete." She said. "Dancing and Cheerleading are sports."

"Are they in the Olympics?"

"Do you know how in shape, how focused, how determined you have to be and how much dedication you need to dance or to be a cheerleader?"

"No doubt it takes all that but they aren't sports."

"Okay, fight about it in the car." Dawson said as she handed them their lunches and ushered them towards the door.

"Good luck." Grace said.

"Have a good first day." Jake added. Dawson smiled and Casey threw an arm around her shoulders as they watched them leave.

"So, we're picking up Rachel?" Grace said, glancing at her twin while they drove.

Jake sighed. "How's Tyler?"

"Way to avoid the question."

"Didn't you just do the same thing?" He grinned at her. "It's starting to feel a lot like last year."

OOOOO

Kelly opened the door of the apartment that morning to Lindsay. "Hey," He said.

"Hi," She nodded. Things were still a little awkward between them. "How are you?"

"Good." He said, but she didn't believe him. "You?"

"Good," She nodded again and there was a moment of silence between them before she tried to lighten the mood. "I'm here to pick up mini me."

"Right, she's almost ready." Severide said with a nod and a bit of a smile. "She is like you, huh?"

"Yeah, unfortunately the bad parts too." Lindsay said.

Severide frowned briefly. "You mean your parents."

She nodded. "Our mothers and our childhoods are a little too similar."

"Well, I meant she's smart like you, and strong." He said.

"And a bit rough around the edges too." She smiled. "Let's hope she doesn't make as many mistakes as I did along the way."

"Hey, sorry, I over slept." Grace said, coming into the living room and grabbing her bag as Kelly handed her jacket to her. "Thanks."

"No problem," He said. "Have a good day."

"You too." She smiled and closed the door behind her, but she didn't miss the longing stare Severide and Lindsay shared before she did.

"So, how is he doing for real?" She asked as they drove to the station.

"He's working on it." Grace shrugged. "It's too bad you two can't figure it out."

"Oh, you caught that huh?" Lindsay grinned. "It's just not the right time."

"Is it ever?"

"Hey," She interrupted as they walked into the station. "What about your love triangle?"

"Love triangle?" Antonio frowned. "What is it now?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Grace smiled.

"Can you take a break from boys for a while, please?" He asked.

"What boy?" Halstead interrupted. "Do I have to put the fear of God into some new kid?"

"Not exactly new." Grace mumbled and immediately regretted it.

"You're joking, right?" Halstead said. "Tyler, again?"

Grace sighed. "I don't know."

"Hence the love triangle." Lindsay said, smiling as she nudged Grace. "I didn't mean to drag these boys into your personal life."

"Oh, I know." Grace said. "They just invite themselves."

"Does that mean you don't want our advice?" Antonio asked with a grin. "Because I'd be happy to let you know my opinions about it."

"So would I." Halstead nodded.

"Hey, you two," Pratt said, gesturing towards Lindsay and Halstead. "You're up for mandatory fire arm relicensing, get to the shooting range by Friday."

"Oh, can I go?" Grace asked excitedly. "That would be so cool!"

"Can you come? Sure." Halstead said. "Can you shoot? Not a chance."

"Come on, Jay." She begged. "Please?"

"Don't look directly into her eyes, it's a trap." Antonio said. "I'll tell you what, if you can get Gabby to agree to let you shoot, then sure, you can shoot."

Grace sighed. "That's so not fair. She won't even let Jake motocross race, she's not going to let me shoot a gun."

"Exactly." He smiled at her.

OOOOO

"What happened to your face?" Grace frowned when she came into the firehouse that afternoon. Severide was sitting alone at the squad table when she came in, checking some equipment, trying to keep himself busy.

Severide sighed. "Grace, I don't want to talk about it."

"But I do." She said. "And you're the only one I can talk to about her."

"I can't talk about her."

"I know what it's like." She said. "The worst part is that you forget they're gone sometimes and that pain

you feel when you realize they're gone all over again," She shook her head. "It hurts all over again."

"No, the worst part is everyone asking me about it all the time and wanting me talk to them about her." He snapped.

"Have you even said it out loud?" She asked. "Have you said it? Because it makes a world of difference when you admit it out loud."

Severide stared at her for a moment before pulling out the chair beside him. "What do you want to know?"

Grace sat down and sighed. "She's the only person I had that I could talk to about guys and other stuff that would give me real advice." She explained. "The rest of you treat me like a kid, and I get why, you're protective and all that. But Shay was different. She'd treat me like a friend. She could relate and she had experience and she gave really good advice."

"She was good with you." He said. "She wanted you to have someone to turn to if you needed help."

"Judgement free zone," Grace nodded.

"You can talk to me about it." He said. "I'm the one she'd turn to with her problems."

"Every time I try to talk to you about guys you get really protective." Grace grinned. "And you've made it pretty clear that you don't like Tyler."

"Yeah, I'm protective and for good reason." He nodded. "But that doesn't mean I don't want to listen. I want you to be happy, so try me."

"She told me that dating in the real world, the adult world, has no titles and usually more than one person at a time before you had the talk." She explained. "She said she'd be there and I could talk to her while I figured out what I wanted."

"You mean who you want?" He said.

"Yeah, but the thing is, she's not here and I feel like she's the only one that can tell me what to do."

"Grace, you feel that way because she's gone. She wouldn't have some magic piece of advice for you that would suddenly make this decision easier. She would have told you to trust your gut and to be careful."

"If I wasn't me, if we weren't family and if I wasn't in high school, if we were just friends or if we just worked together and I told you all this about my ex-boyfriend," Grace said. "What would you tell me to do?"

"I would say that it sounds like you love this guy but you're holding his mistakes against because you're afraid of getting hurt by him again." Severide sighed. "Honestly, when I first met Tyler I liked him and I thought he was a good kid. If you think he has changed, he probably has. You have good instincts, Grace but you need to stop asking everyone else, and just ask yourself. What do you want?"

"Listening to your heart is supposed to be easy," She sighed. "But they never tell you that the voice in your head is louder."

"The head talks but the heart feels." Casey interrupted. "I think it's time you and I had a little talk about Tyler."

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	7. Chapter 7

Casey closed the door behind him once they were in his office. Grace sighed, crossed her arms and looked at him, with a bit more attitude than he liked. He countered, putting his hands on his hips and raising his eyebrows at her for moment before settling into his typical brooding frown.

"I know what you're going to say." She said. "And I don't want the speech."

"Grace," She recognized that tone and knew where the conversation was headed. She rolled her eyes and looked away annoyed. His frown deepened further. "Hey, look at me." He said, reaching out and placing his hand under her chin. His thumb gentle grazed the side of her cheek. "When I think of Tyler, I think about showing up to the police station and seeing you with stitches right here and bruises."

"Dad," She said gently. "He's different."

"That's what they all say, Grace." Casey said as he let her go. "And maybe he has changed, but how long until that side of him comes out again? What if it's worse the next time? I'm not going to let some little punk ruin your life."

"I took the pills too." She said quietly. "If you don't think he could change, then you must think I'm going to do it again too."

"It's not the same thing, Grace. I know you think it is, but you were not violent, you didn't hurt anyone."

"I hurt you, and Jake." She said. "Gabby, Christie, Kelly, Antonio, Lindsay and basically everyone in this house and at the station. I let everyone down and I worried them all. I did hurt people, maybe not physically, but I still hurt them."

"Gracie," He shook his head.

"No, Daddy, please just listen to me." Grace said. "I know that this is more about my parents than it is about me. I get it, Tyler reminds you of Seth and I remind you of my Mom and you think we're going to head down the same road. But trust me when I say that no one knows what that road looks like better than I do, not even Jake, and she is the last person I want to end up like, as horrible as that sounds."

"If anything ever happened to you," Casey sighed. "I don't trust Tyler, Grace."

"Kelly said that when he first met Tyler he liked him and he thought he was a good kid." She said. "What did you think?"

"I thought the same."

"And what did you think of Ben?"

"I like Ben. You know I think he's good for you."

"Okay, well last weekend Ben got drunk and spent the night treating me like crap in front of his friends. And when I wanted to leave the party, he flipped out on me and we got into a big fight."

"What?" Casey frowned. "The more I hear, the more I don't want you to date."

Grace smiled. "My point is that people change and they make mistakes." She sighed. "Seth and my Mom were abusive and I have no desire to let anyone treat me like a punching bag ever again. I'm not a victim, not anymore. If some guy wants to knock me around he's going to get knocked out."

Casey smiled slightly. "That sounds like Lindsay."

"She taught me how to defend myself, how to feel strong, not weak." She explained. "Besides, between you, Kelly, Antonio and all the guys and girls here and there, there is no way Tyler would ever try anything ever again. I know you don't trust him and I get it, but you have to trust me."

"I do, trust you." He said. "But you're my little girl, and it's my job to protect you."

"I know." She smiled. "So, he asked me to go out on Saturday, on a date. Can I go?"

Casey sighed as he nodded. "Yeah, you can go."

OOOOO

Grace frowned when she saw the text on her phone. It was from Violet. The two of them weren't as close anymore since Casey and Dawson let the twins stay home alone. They no longer slept over at Christie and Jim's when Casey was on shift so they didn't see any of them as much anymore.

The only time she spent time with Christie was when she wanted to take her shopping, which usually resulted in Christie buying her way too much stuff. Grace felt guilty about that; it was like her Aunt was bribing her to spend time with her. But they hadn't done that, or much or any bonding in a while.

But this text had Grace a little worried. Casey told them that Violet had moved and changed schools and she knew how hard that was. It was apparently especially hard for Violet because she had gotten into a fight. Casey had told the twins that if Violet contacted one of them to make sure they helped her out.

"What is it?" Antonio said, noticing the frown on her face.

"It's my cousin Violet." She said. "She's practically begging me to come pick her up from school."

"In the middle of the day?" He frowned. "Is she okay?"

"I don't think so. She's been having a rough time at this new school." Grace sighed. "Can we go pick her up?"

"Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Girls can be really mean." She said. "And she's going through a hard time at home too."

As they drove to the school Grace dialed Casey's number. She got his voicemail and figured he was on a call. "Hey, Violet texted me and begged me to pick her up. I'm on my way now. I'll bring her by the house so you can talk to her."

Antonio pulled up at the school and Grace jumped out when saw Violet with a teacher outside. They were arguing, and Grace assumed the teacher was trying to make Violet go back inside. Antonio parked and got out of the car as Grace quickly went to Violet and Antonio followed.

"What's going on?" She demanded, looking at the teacher before she turned to Violet. "Are you okay?"

Violet nodded and Grace saw the relief come over her face. "This is my cousin." Violet said. "She's picking me up, like I told you."

"I can't just let you leave with someone I've never seen before." The teacher said. "You're supposed to be in class and your parents need to approve pickups like this."

"Look, here is my ID." Grace said, pulling out her license. "See, same last name."

"Excuse me," Antonio said, flashing his badge. "Will you let her leave with a police officer?"

"Who are you?" The teacher frowned.

"He's my Uncle, on the other side." Grace answered.

"I will take Violet home." Antonio said.

"Alright," The teacher sighed. "But your parents will have to call."

Violet nodded and followed Grace to the car, getting into the back. She was quiet as they drove to the firehouse. Antonio pulled up in front of the house and looked at Grace. They had gotten pretty good at communication with just looks, and right now he was telling her to help her cousin. She nodded and got out of the car with Violet.

The house was quiet, they were out on a call. Grace led Violet into the kitchen and started making some food. Violet sat at the table and Grace watched her silently for a few minutes. She decided to make nachos, Violet liked them and the guys loved them.

"Are you okay?" Grace asked as she cut up peppers, onions and tomatoes.

"You got lucky with Uncle Matt." Violet said suddenly. "It's is funny that out of the three of them, he's the best parent and he has no biological kids."

"Your Mom is great, Violet." Grace nodded with a frown. "Trust me, I know a thing or two about bad Moms, and bad parents in general, and your Mom is far from a bad parent."

"Uncle Matt let you and Jake move in when things got bad." She said. "Do you think he'd let me move in too?"

"Come on, things can't be that bad." Grace's frown deepened. "Jake and I had a really bad childhood, Violet. There was drugs and drinking and times when neither one of our parents came home for days. They were violent and abusive with each other and with us. It got really bad and that's why we came here."

"They were fighting all the time and then he was just gone." Violet said. "We had to move and I had to change schools and leave all my friends. But you're saying it's not bad enough yet?"

"No, I'm saying that it sucks that you had to change schools and that you're parents are splitting up, but your Mom is awesome and she's going through a hard time too, do you really want to leave her?"

"No," Violet sighed. "I just want things to go back to normal. Uncle Matt made things better for you."

"And he will help you through all this if you need him and be there for you." Grace said as she grated cheese. "But even if you did move in, we're not in your old school district either."

"I know, but at least you and Jake would be around."

"Violet, you're in grade seven. The middle school isn't even near the high school."

"It couldn't be any worse." She sighed.

"I know what it's like." Grace said, putting layers of chips on pans and putting the toppings and cheese on. "Girls can be really mean and nasty."

"This coming from the popular cheerleader." She said with a grin.

"I wasn't always popular." Grace smiled back at her, putting the pans in the oven. "I can teach you how to defend yourself."

"Really?" She asked.

"Yeah, Antonio, he's a boxer." She said. "And Lindsay, one of the cops in intelligent, she's a total badass and she taught me some stuff."

"That would be cool," She said.

"They're back." Grace said as she heard the trucks coming into the garage. "It's going to get a little crazy when they all rush in here."

"Does he know I'm here?" She asked, starting to feel slightly nervous.

"I left him a message." She said as Casey came into the kitchen first with a worried expression. "Yeah, he knows."

"Are you okay?" He asked, putting a hand on Violet's shoulder before looking to Grace. She nodded and he visibly relaxed. "Okay, you two, my office."

"What smells so good?" They were interrupted by the guys coming into the kitchen.

"Nachos." Grace smiled as she walked out of the kitchen. "They're almost ready."

"Are we in trouble?" Violet asked, looking at Grace as they followed Casey.

Grace grinned. "He's not all fun and games."

"What's going on?" Casey asked once they were in his office, door closed. He had his hands on his hips as the girls sat on the bed. "What happened at school, Violet?"

"I got into a fight with some of the girls before lunch." She said quietly.

"Again?" He raised his eyebrows.

"They don't like me. They pick on me and push me around." She said. "I didn't want to be there so I asked Grace to come get me during lunch before they could do anything."

"Does your Mom know you are here?"

"No," She shook her head. "She'll be mad that I left school."

"I'm not particularly happy about that part either." He said with a frown. "Why didn't you tell a teacher what was going on?"

"They know. They don't care." She said. "I don't like it there, Uncle Matt."

Casey sighed and kneeled in front of her. "I know you don't and I know all of this isn't easy for you, but I promised you everything was going to be okay and I meant it. I'm going down to that school tomorrow and I will make sure the bullying stops."

"Oh, protective anger." Grace grinned, trying to lighten the mood. "They better watch out at that school, that's the face he makes when he means business."

Violet grinned and Casey tried to hold back his smirk. "Well, you better warn Tyler about it because he'll be seeing this face tomorrow night while I have a little talk with him."

_**Reviews make writers happy. Happy writers write more often.**_


	8. Chapter 8

Grace, Claire and Rachel headed out of the change room and into that gym for cheerleading practise that afternoon. They were working on a new routine with the freshmen cheerleaders and they were teaching them how to fly and how to catch the flyers. It was the first time they were going to work in the air and not just on the floor and the freshmen girls were pretty excited.

"Are you mad were crashing tomorrow?" Rachel asked as they stretched.

"No," Grace frowned, shaking her head. "It might take some of the pressure off."

"Good, because Tyler's Uncle owns that fancy Italian restaurant downtown, and I really want to go." Claire said. "It's the first real date, like an adult date, and I'm not saying no, girl."

Grace grinned. "Well, it's fine with me."

"Okay ladies," Claire called to get the attention of the nine girls. "We're going to work on throws today. Split up into three groups of three; two bases and a flyer."

Claire, Rachel and Grace split up, each one taking a group to coach. Grace's group was having some issues. The bases weren't working together and that could put the flyer in danger. But the flyer wasn't that great either, she was making mistakes in the delivery which made it hard for the bases to do their job.

"Okay, hang on." Grace interrupted, signalling Claire. "You two have to communicate, or the flyer hits the ground. Flyers need to be fearless, but they can only do that when they trust their bases. Jenna, step out, I'll show you what I mean."

Claire stepped away from her group and came to watch. "Okay, girls, Grace is my best flyer, do not drop her." She said. "I want to hear you two communicate but you do not ever take your eyes off of your flyer."

Grace stepped between them, letting them bring her up. She was doing a one legged twist. Hold on the one leg, then they throw her, she tucks her arms in, twists and they catch her. It was done perfectly and the catch was done properly.

"See, you got it." Grace said to the bases before turning to Jenna. "Flyers are fearless. If you don't want to do this,"

"I do." She interrupted. "I can do it."

"Alright," Claire nodded. "Grace and I are going to be your bases. You need to trust us."

Jenna nodded and Claire and Grace hoisted her up. She held the position and they threw her up, but she panicked in the twist and opened up too early. It threw her off balance and she came down hard, hitting Grace and knocking her to the ground before she fell hard on the ground herself.

Grace had the wind knocked out of her and struggled to sit up. She grabbed her shoulder, something was wrong, she knew it immediately. Jenna had collided into her right side before Grace fell hard on her shoulder. She sat up slowly, holding her shoulder as she looked at Jenna.

Claire was kneeling beside Jenna, she had hit her head and was unconscious. "Okay, someone get the school nurse." She looked over at Grace. "Are you okay?"

Grace tried to move her shoulder and winced in pain. "It's my shoulder."

The trainer and nurse came in and went straight to Jenna as the coach came to Grace. "Can you move it?" She asked and started feeling around.

"Not really." Grace said through the pain.

"Okay, sit tight." She said. "The paramedics are on their way."

Less than five minutes later Mills and Brett came into the gym. He saw Grace and immediately became worried. Brett went to Jenna and Mills came over to Grace. "I'm fine, I can wait." She said before he could say anything. "Go to Jenna first."

Mills hesitated but sighed and went to help Brett. They got Jenna to respond and she was conscious when they put her on the stretcher. Brett took her to the ambulance and Mills went back to Grace. He checked her shoulder and then helped her up.

"Come on," He said. "You're coming too."

"How bad is it?" She asked as they left the gym. She was holding her right arm across her chest with her left hand holding her elbow to keep it in place and to keep it from moving too much.

"Your shoulder is dislocated." He said, helping her into the ambulance. "I'll give you something for the pain."

"Hey Grace, I'm sorry," Jenna said as Grace sat down.

"It's okay, it wasn't your fault." Grace smiled. "I'm glad you're okay."

"Just a pinch here, Grace." Mills said as he gave Grace some pain killers. She winched and he grinned. "Don't be such a baby."

"Well, that's professional." Grace grinned.

"You two know each other?" Jenna asked.

"Yeah, Peter works with my Dad." Grace said.

"Your Dad's a paramedic?" She asked. "That's ironic."

"No, he's a firefighter." Grace said as she looked at Mills. "Can you call him?"

"Already did, he's meeting us here." Mills said as the ambulance stopped. "Let me get Jenna out and then I'll help you."

Grace nodded and stayed out of the way as Brett opened the door and Mills jumped out, pulling the stretcher out. Brett took Jenna inside with the help of two nurses and an ER doctor as Mills turned to help Grace out.

"Dislocated shoulder." Mills said to a doctor as they walked into the ER and he handed her over to a nurse. Grace looked back nervously at him and he smiled. "You'll be okay."

Grace nodded and let the nurse take her to a bed to get checked out by the doctor. Another nurse came in with Casey close behind. The doctor looked up when he came in. "You're the Dad?" He asked.

"Yes," Casey nodded. "Is she okay?"

"Her shoulder is dislocated so I have to relocate it." He said. "We're going to put a sheet under her arm and across her chest. The nurse will pull on it as I pull from the wrist and rotate. It's comforting for the patient if a family member is present."

Grace lay back in the bed and the nurse put the sheet under her right arm and across her chest, holding it above her left shoulder. The doctor came to her right side and took a hold of her right arm before nodding to Casey.

"Just look at me, Grace." Casey said as he kneeled down on her left side and took her hand, holding it in his. "Right at me."

The doctor was gentle and patient. It didn't take long and it wasn't as bad as Grace thought it was going to be, but it never is. They x-rayed her shoulder to make sure it was back in place, put her arm in a sling and gave her some pain killers.

Casey helped her in the truck and they drove back to the firehouse. Jake and Violet were still there and he didn't want Grace home alone with her injury. They usually stayed at the firehouse for dinner when he was on shift anyway before going home later.

The minute Grace walked into the kitchen she was swarmed. "Are you okay?" Dawson reached her first. "What did they give you?" Casey handed Dawson the pills for her to look at.

"Mama Bear was concerned." Severide grinned. "How's the shoulder?"

"Not bad, I'm pretty drugged up though." Grace smiled back at him. "I'm fine, but I'm starving."

"And that is why I made spaghetti." Dawson said, walking back to the stove. "With Caesar salad and garlic toast."

"My favourite." Grace said, sitting down with everyone as Dawson put the food on the table. Grace sat at the head of the table beside Casey with Dawson on her other side of her. Grace frowned, trying to figure out how she was going to eat with only one hand. "Dad, help."

Casey grinned and cut up the spaghetti on the plate. "Maybe spaghetti wasn't the best idea."

"I don't like this part." Grace mumbled. "I'm going to starve."

OOOOO

Grace plugged in her curling iron at her vanity table and sat down to try to do her make up with one hand. Casey had built the vanity table for her when they moved, mainly to ensure she didn't stay in the bathroom too long, but she loved it anyway. Gabby knocked on the open door, holding a purple dress.

"Is that for me?" Grace smiled. The dress was tight fitting, straight hem, with a V-neck, sleeveless, and was a bit short, hitting a few inches above the knee. It was a dark purple, but not too dark, and it looked great on brunettes.

"Yes, I know you've been eyeing it and I figured tonight was the best time to let you borrow it." She smiled back at her. "Do you need help?"

"Do my hair?" She asked. "I want soft curls and the top layer pinned back and I can't do anything by myself."

"I can help." She said, hanging the dress on the closet door. She picked up the curling iron and began curling Grace's hair. "How's the shoulder?"

"It's sore, but it's more frustrating than anything else." Grace sighed. "This sucks."

"It's not forever." Dawson smiled. "Are you nervous?"

"Yeah, kind of." Grace smiled. "It feels like the first date all over again."

"Well, it kind of is, you're starting over right?"

Grace nodded. "Yeah, but with Jake and Rachel, and Nick and Claire crashing, it's not just the two of us."

"Maybe that's best." She said. "Ease back into this."

"Speaking of easing into things," Grace said. "Can you make sure Dad doesn't go too far tonight."

Dawson grinned. "I will try."

She finished curling her hair and grabbed a few bobby pins, pulling the pieces back and pinning them in place. She helped Grace finished her make up. Grace could do everything with her left hand except the eyeliner and mascara. She was wearing a little bit more than usual, but nothing too drastic. She changed into the dress, with the help of Dawson again, and looked at herself in the full length mirror on the back of her door. She smiled, she felt really pretty.

She slipped on a pair of black flats, heels were never her thing, and definitely not a good idea with her shoulder. Grace left her room and headed across the apartment and into the kitchen, stopping when she saw Casey. Something was on her mind ever since she talked to Violet.

"Daddy?" Grace said from the kitchen doorway.

"Yeah, baby?" He said, looking over his shoulder from the stove where he was cooking dinner. "Well, you look beautiful."

"Thanks," She smiled as she leaned against the frame and crossed her arms. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure," He nodded with a frown.

"I was talking to Violet about how bad things were for Jake and I growing up, and she started telling me about all the fighting between her parents, and I started thinking about your parents." She explained. "All my mom ever said was that she didn't know how to be a good parent because she never had one."

Casey frowned. "What do you want to know?"

"Did they kick her out when she got pregnant with us?"

"Yeah, my Dad did." Casey sighed with a nod. "My Mom tried to convince him not to, she was always trying to convince him not to overreact when it came to us. He had a temper and he took it out on her most of the time, until one day she just snapped."

Grace sighed. "The thing is, everyone always talks about how horrible your Mom was, but they never talk about your Dad or what he did to push her. And then Violet tells me she wants to move in here because of what's going on at home, but I know that Christie is a great mom. She's not the problem, Jim is. So, then I started thinking, was my Mom really that bad, or was it Seth that made her like that?"

"Your Mom tried but it was a bad situation. She was young, Seth was in and out, she was in with the wrong crowd, but she tried, Grace. She did the best she could for a long time but when she moved to California, Christie and I weren't there for her and she got caught up in it all." Casey frowned as he tried to explain. "My Mom is responsible for what she did, no matter her reasoning, and so is your Mom."

"So, is that why you're so good with this?" She asked. "You know what not to do?"

He grinned. "Something like that, I guess."

Grace looked at him for a moment before crossing the room and wrapping her arms around his chest tightly. Casey returned the embrace and dropped a kiss to her head as they separated. She looked up at him and nodded. "Thank you."

"You and Jake are the best thing that's ever happened to me." He said. "I should be thanking you."

Grace smiled. "Can you please be nice tonight?"

"Can you please put a sweater on?" He countered.

"What's wrong with what I'm wearing?" She said, looking down at her outfit. "It's Gabby's dress."

"I know it is." He nodded. "And if you want to wear it, you'll be a sweater on."

"Daddy," She whined. "My arm is in a sling. I need all the help I can get."

"You know my rules." His rule was that if she was showing leg, she wasn't showing arms, or vice versa, and nothing low cut.

"But we're going out to dinner at his uncle's restaurant and it's kind of fancy."

"Grace, it won't kill you to put a cardigan on."

"I know." She sighed. "But it will ruin the outfit."

"Here, Grace." Dawson said, coming into the kitchen and handing her a black cardigan. "It goes with the dress."

Grace took the cardigan just as the doorbell rang. Casey held up his hand, pointing a finger at her. "You, stay here." He said. "And put the cardigan on."

Casey headed to the front door, taking a breath before opening it. He did his best to look intimidating but not too threatening. Tyler was wearing a simple black suit, with a white shirt and a thin black tie. He nodded. "Lieutenant Casey."

"Tyler," He nodded back, stepping back to let him in. "Come in."

Tyler walked in and turned to face Casey. "I never apologized to you for what happened. I told Grace I was sorry a million times but I never apologized to her family for what I did." He said. "I'm sorry that I hurt her and that I put her through all that, and that I put you through it all too."

Casey nodded. "It takes a lot of guts to come here and say that and I appreciate it, it shows maturity. But let me be really clear Tyler. If anything happens to Grace, if you step out of line even a little bit, you will get to know a side of me that you won't like."

"I understand." Tyler said.

"Good, because there will be no third chance." He said and offered his hand, which Tyler shook. "Actions speak louder than words."

"Yes, sir." He nodded.

Casey nodded back and gestured towards the kitchen. "She's in the kitchen."

He watched Tyler walk away before heading down the hall to Jake's room. He was struggling with a tie and Casey couldn't help but grin at him. Jake turned when he saw him in the doorway. "I hate ties."

"Need some help?"

"Yes." He said in frustration. "Can you do it for me?"

"Yeah, come here." Casey put the tie on him. "I'll have to teach you how to do this."

"I never wear them." He said. "Am I the only one that thinks this night is a little much?"

"Maybe a bit." Casey grinned before frowning. "Hey, keep an eye out tonight, alright?"

"Yeah, Dad, I always do." Jake said. "Have you and Gabby talked much about me and motocross racing?"

Casey looked up from the tie for a brief moment. "Not really." He said. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, there's a race next weekend." He said slowly.

"I see." Casey nodded finished with the tie. "There you go."

"Thanks." Jake said. "So, can I be in the race next weekend?"

Casey responded with a sigh. "I'll have to think about it, Jake."

"Can you convince Gabby to at least discuss the possibility of it?"

Casey grinned. "You're on your own there."

_**Reviews make writers happy. Happy writers write more often.**_


	9. Chapter 9

Grace was doing her make-up when Jake came into her room, closing the door behind him. "Sure, come in." She said. "It's not like I'm doing something."

"Check this out." He said and handed her his phone. "Nick just sent me this."

"Where is this?" She frowned as she looked at the pictures.

"It's over at Northwestern."

"You think the rents are going to let us go to a college party?" Grace laughed. "You're insane."

"The high school were playing at tonight is right near there." Jake explained. "The team invited our team, but we'll just say it's a high school party."

Grace sighed. "I don't even want to go tonight. It's not like I can cheer and I don't have a costume that works with this sling."

"We'll figure it out." He said. "And no one is going to care about your arm."

"There is no way they're going to let us go, not after what happened last year." Grace said. "And if we lie to them, and they find out, we're dead."

"Stop worrying and just have a little fun, will yeah?" He said opening her door. "It's going to be great."

Grace rolled her eyes with a grin and followed him to the kitchen for breakfast. They sat down at the table with Casey and Dawson for breakfast. They were being quiet as they ate and Grace was waiting for Jake to bring up the party.

"What are your plans for Halloween tonight?" Dawson asked. "Are you going to the school dance?"

Casey watched the twins exchange a look and sighed. "Let me remind you that there will not be a repeat of last year." He said. "So, if you're planning some kind of scheme, you better stop. You hear me?"

"Oh, I have no desire to see that vein pop out of your forehead." Jake smirked. "So, don't worry, no scheming this year."

"Then why the look? I know that look." Casey asked and watched them look at each other again. "Yeah, there it is. What's that about?"

"Okay, we have an away game and that school is throwing this corn maze Halloween field party." Jake explained. "And we want to go."

"You're just telling us about this now?" Casey asked with a raised brow.

Jake shrugged. "You just asked now."

Casey frowned and titled his head slightly. "Really?"

"We just found out like twenty minutes ago." Grace said.

Dawson frowned at her. "You don't sound too excited."

"I was having a hard time deciding what to be before I dislocated my shoulder." Grace said. "Now I have a sling to deal with."

"I think I may have an idea." Dawson said. "As long as my Lieutenant will let me work on the costume at work, I'll have something ready for you when you come by after school."

Casey smirked. "Well, this one time, I guess."

"Does that mean we can go?" Jake asked.

"We'll discuss it while you're at school." Casey said. "Now get going, you'll be late."

OOOOO

The twins arrived at the firehouse after school. The game was later that night so they were eating dinner at the firehouse before heading over to the school. Dawson grinned at her when they walked into the kitchen. She had spent most of the day putting the costume together and was really excited to show Grace and get her reaction.

"Come on, I want to show you." Dawson said. "But I'm not telling you what it is until you have it on."

Grace followed Dawson into Casey's office and Dawson closed the blinds before helping Grace get into the costume. She grinned at Dawson when she saw the costume and headed out into the kitchen to show the guys. Grace stepped into the kitchen wearing a tight fitting blue tank top with a tutu skirt that was covered in blue feathers, yellow leggings, and a blue headband with a feather hair piece.

Jake laughed when he saw her. "A bird with a broken wing?" He asked as Grace nodded. "That's awesome."

"It looks great, Grace." Severide said and the guys agreed.

"Dawson spent the day making that." Casey said. "It turned out pretty good."

"It's perfect." Grace smiled. "Thanks, Gabby."

"Yeah, you got it." Dawson smiled back at her.

"So," Jake said, drawing the word out. "This means we can go right?"

Casey sighed. "Yes, but you need to be back in this house by one, no later and neither of you better be drunk when you come through those doors." He made a point to look at Jake. "You got it?"

"Yes, sir." Jake nodded.

"Grace?" Casey asked. "Did you hear me?"

"Dad, it's not like I can drink." Grace gestured towards her arm. "I'm on pain killers for my broken wing, remember?"

"Be careful with those," Casey said. "You're not allowed to drive."

"She can barely drive with two arms," Jake said. "One arm would be a disaster."

"Shut up, Jake." Grace said.

"Okay, knock it off, both of you." Casey warned. "Eat before you go."

"What are we having?" Jake asked.

"I'm not hungry." Grace said. "I'm going to change."

"I made lasagna." Dawson said.

"And you're eating." Casey said, pointing at Grace when she came back into the room. "Don't argue with me, just sit down."

Grace sighed but sat down beside Dawson. "Just eat a bit." She said. "It's good, I promise."

"I just don't feel like eating." Grace said. "The pills make me feel sick."

"Are you eating when you take the pain killers?" Dawson frowned. "They are really hard on your stomach without food."

"Kind of hard to eat when I feel nauseous." Grace mumbled as she picked at her food. "Even when it's good."

Dawson grinned at her. "It's a bit of a viscous circle."

"Are you coming to my game?" Jake asked.

"Yeah, we'll take a ride." Casey nodded. "Who's picking you up?"

"Rachel," Jake said.

"Finally come to your senses on that one?" Severide smirked at him. "Realize that you had a great girl?"

"Yeah, yeah," He grinned. "She took me back, so I must be pretty great too."

"Or you just got lucky." Severide shrugged.

"Yeah, or that." Jake grinned as he finished eating. "We have to go, Rachel's outside."

"See you later." Grace called as they left the house. "They're going to find out if they show up tonight."

"They're not going to find out unless you say something." Jake said as they reached the car. "Relax, Grace."

OOOOO

"So, what happened to your arm?" A cheerleader from the other school asked Grace as they changed in their locker room for the party.

"Dislocated shoulder," Grace said.

"One of our freshmen flyers got a little skittish in the air." Claire said. "She totally panicked and opened up too soon."

"Some flyers can't fly," The girl smirked. "You can't teach someone how to be fearless."

"Now isn't that the truth." Rachel nodded. "But at least your costume is cute."

"I know." Grace smiled. "Tyler is going to be Wylie Coyote so that makes me the roadrunner."

"That's awesome," Claire said. "I'm a parrot and Nick is my pirate, totally stole the idea from How I Met Your Mother, Lily and Marshall are my relationship idols."

"Well, Jake and I have Top Gun costumes," Rachel said. "Which I'm fine with, but I really wanted to go as June Carter and Johnny Cash."

"That's a great idea." The girl said. "You should have done that."

"Right?" Rachel nodded. "My boyfriend likes to get his way, though. Last year we were firefighters."

"Did you see those firefighters that showed up?" The girl said. "Some of them were really hot."

"Yeah, like those lieutenants." Another girl said. "The blonde one, especially."

Grace frowned and made a face as Rachel and Claire burst out laughing. "Yeah, that would be my Dad."

"Really?" The one girl asked before she started laughing. "Sorry, but it's true."

"Yeah, it kind of is." Claire shrugged. "There are some good looking guys in that house, you know, for older guys."

"So true," Rachel said. "Kelly and Mills, to name a few."

"And let's stop now." Grace said, shaking her head with a smile. "It's getting weird."

"What's this party like?" Claire asked as they left the change room.

"Oh, it's amazing," The girl said. "Hot college boys everywhere."

"Well, I like that part." Claire grinned. "And before you come out with some comment about Nick, I can look, and so can the both of you."

Grace smirked at Claire before heading over to a smiling Tyler. "You're pretty cute in that costume." He said. "And I'm going to go ahead and call it; we've definitely got the best couple costume."

"Thank God for Gabby," Grace said as they walked outside. "She's a miracle worker."

The party was a block over, but it didn't take them long to get there. It was a nice night, a bit cool, but not too bad. Everyone had on layers and Grace was glad Dawson insisted she take a blue zip up fleece. It went with her costume, but Grace thought she looked better without it.

There were people everywhere at this party and it looked like people of various ages too. They had a big bon fire, the corn maze, and a DJ booth set up. Grace and Tyler headed into the maze, mainly to get away from everyone for a while. They were still trying to figure out the dynamics of their relationship but they hadn't had much alone time.

"I figure, maybe we should get a little lost for a while." Tyler said as he took her hand.

"Yeah, I'm okay with that." She smiled at him and they were quiet for a few moments. "Okay, is this just me, or is like, really awkward between us?"

"So awkward," He said and they both laughed. "I think we're thinking about it too much."

"Yeah, I tend to overthink things," She said slowly. "We can't pick up where we left off."

"And I don't want to, considering we left off on a bad note." He sighed. "Look, if you want to start things over, take it slow, I'm okay with that."

"I don't want to start over exactly," She tried to explain. "I don't want to do that thing where we pretend like we're strangers. I like most of our past and I don't want to forget it."

"We have a pretty good story," He nodded. "Why don't we just stop thinking about it and stop trying to figure out all the logistics? You know how I feel about you, I'm in love you, and I'm not going to pretend that I'm not."

"I've always loved you," She smiled as they rounded the corner and she almost walked into someone. Grace looked at him with surprise, unsure what to do. "Ben," She said slowly.

"Grace," He said as he looked at Tyler. "Well, this is kind of awkward."

Tyler let go of her hand gently. "I'll give you two a minute."

"What happened to your shoulder?" Ben asked.

"Cheering accident," She said. "So, I'm a bird with a broken wing."

He smirked. "That's clever."

"Gabby made it." She said. "So, how have you been?"

"Since you dumped me and got back with your ex?" He asked. "Just peachy."

Grace frowned with a nod. "I should go."

"No, wait, I'm sorry." He said. "Look, I know I kind of pushed you away, but I could tell you had feelings for someone else, and I didn't want to be a pawn in your love story."

"For what it's worth, I really liked you."

"Just not as much as you like him, it's okay, I understand." Ben nodded. "I got back together with Carrie; sometimes the second time is the charm."

"I guess we gave each other some perspective." Grace smiled. "Take care, Ben."

"Hey Grace," He called after her. "See you in another life."

She couldn't help but laugh a little at that, and she gave a nod before she turned back around. It was a line from Lost that Grace thought was really weird. She had never seen the show, but it was his favourite, so he made her watch all the seasons with him. That line was an inside joke of theirs and it made Grace smile that he remembered it.

"All good?" Tyler asked as they continued to walk through the maze.

"Yeah," She nodded as they found their way out. "Well, that wasn't that hard."

"I don't think too many sober people go through it." Tyler said and Grace smirked with a nod.

"Probably not." The smile melted off Grace's face when she saw Dawson talking to Jake and Rachel. "What are you doing here?" Grace asked when she got close to them.

"What am I doing here?" Dawson asked, raising her eyebrows and her voice. "We took a ride to fill the truck up and heard that Northwestern was having a field party with a corn maze. That sounded a little too familiar, so we drove by the high school and what would you know? They aren't having a Halloween dance."

"Yeah, about that," Jake said.

"It was so not my idea." Grace said.

"You better think of something better than that to say to your father." Dawson said. "Come on, all of you."

They followed Dawson back towards the truck where the guys were standing and waiting for them. Casey was pacing back and forth with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face. Dawson took Tyler and Rachel towards the truck when Casey came towards the twins. He stopped and looked at them, his hands on his hips, and a deep frown on his face.

"Dad," Jake started. "I can explain."

"Get in the truck." Casey said firmly, letting a bit of growl in his voice. "Now."

_**Reviews make writers happy. Happy writers write more often.**_


	10. Chapter 10

The truck was silent as they drove. Grace noticed Cruz had glanced at Casey a few times and that wasn't a good sign. Casey was stewing, glaring at the rode ahead with a face of steel. Dawson didn't look too happy either, none of them did, but there was a difference between the looks they had and the one Casey was wearing. He had Cruz stop at the police station, where Tyler's Dad was standing at the door, and came outside as the truck pulled up.

No body argued and nobody asked what he was doing. Casey must have called ahead and told Tyler's Dad what was going on. Grace watched him talk to Tyler's Dad through the window, he could be pretty intimidating himself and he didn't look happy. The conversation was quick and Casey was back in the truck in a few minutes, leaving Tyler and Rachel at the station. Grace wanted to say something, she hated when he was mad at her, but she didn't know what to say.

They pulled into the firehouse and got out of the truck just as a call came through. Another house was requesting back up from Truck 81 and Squad 3, and Casey sighed. "Kitchen," was all he said to the twins before climbing back into the truck. They headed into the house as Squad was coming out, and Severide was shaking his head.

"We're talking when I get back." He said as he passed them.

They walked through the door and into the kitchen to see Sylvie sitting on the couch and Mills standing in front of the counter with his arms crossed. "Really you two?" He asked. "You want to tell me what the hell you were thinking?"

"It's just a party," Sylvie said with a frown. "What's the big deal?"

"Thank you!" Jake said. "Seriously, okay so we lied about where the party was, but everything else was the truth."

"You still lied." Mills said. "What if something happened?"

"Nothing happened." Jake said. "I didn't even drink, we were just having a good time."

"Are you kidding?" Mills said. "This is the problem, you never think you do anything wrong."

"Mills," Sylvie said. "Come on, no harm, no foul."

Mills glared at her. "You aren't helping."

"Why are you coming down on them? You're not their father, Mills." She grinned. "They're seniors in high school. This is what they're supposed to do."

"No offense, but you don't even know what you're talking about." Mills said. "Last year they lied about what they were doing, ended up with fake IDs at a club that caught on fire and Grace got trapped inside. And you'd think after all that, they wouldn't do it again."

"We didn't do it again." Jake argued. "The only part I left out was that the party was at Northwestern. Why is that a big deal?"

"I don't know Jake," Mills shrugged. "If it wasn't such a big deal, why did you lie about it?"

"Yeah, this is why I didn't want to go." Grace sighed. "I told you they were going to find out."

"You two are like magnets for trouble, do you know that?" He said. "Try thinking before you leap for once."

"How mad is he?" Grace asked.

"Livid, would be an understatement. Severide is pretty mad too." Mills said. "And for the record, I'm not happy either."

"Yeah, we can see that." Jake said.

"You might want to take a different approach with Casey than the attitude and excuses you're giving me right now." Mills said. "Just a suggestion."

Jake sighed and looked at Grace. She had that look on her face, the same one she would get when they were kids and their parents would do something that scared her. He felt bad that he always seemed to drag her down with him when he got in trouble.

"I'm going to wait in Dad's office." He mumbled before leaving the room.

Mills frowned but let him go. "What about you?" He said. "What have you got to say?"

"Can we not do this right now?" Grace sighed as she gently rubbed her shoulder.

He sighed but nodded. "How's your shoulder?"

"It's sore. I seriously have the worst luck." She said. "I'm not a magnet for trouble, I'm a magnet for injuries."

He smirked. "Let me see." He felt around her shoulder gently, but she still winched when he applied pressure in certain places. "You still have some swelling, but it's looking better."

"It doesn't feel better." She mumbled.

"Did you take the pain meds?"

"I don't want to take too many." She said. "Not after, well, you know."

Mills frowned. "Grace, it's not the same thing."

"Yeah, it is." She said. "All pills kind of scare me now."

"Hey," He sat down at the table beside her. "How long are you going to let that eat at you?"

Grace shrugged and shook her head. "I don't know."

"Let it go, Grace." He said. "Otherwise, that guilt is going to eat you alive."

"Yeah," Grace sighed and looked over through the doors when she heard the trucks pull in. She smiled slightly at Mills before leaving the room and heading to Casey's office to join Jake. He was sitting in the chair at the desk and Grace sat on the bed.

"Are they back?" He asked, looking up from his phone.

"Just pulled in." Grace sighed. "What are we even going to say?"

"I got it." Jake said. "This one is on me."

Jake looked up and saw Casey coming towards the office and he moved to sit on the bed beside Grace. Casey opened the door, walking in and holding it open as Dawson came through before closing it. She sat in the chair as Casey stayed standing, his hands on his hips with his brooding look as he looked at the twins.

"Why did you lie to us?" Dawson asked.

"I thought that if I said the party was at Northwestern, all you'd hear was that it was a college party and you'd only focus on that." Jake explained.

"So, once again you chose not to tell us about something because you knew we'd say no. Instead you lied to get what you want." She said. "Do I have that right?"

"Well, yeah, kind of." Jake said.

"Kind of?" Casey raised his eyebrows. "I believe we've had this conversation more than once before, have we not?"

"Yes, sir." Jake nodded.

"And I told you this morning that if you were planning something that would get you in trouble to stop." He said. "I don't talk because I like the sound of my voice."

"I know, Dad."

"Then explain to me why you chose not to listen, again." He said.

"I don't know." Jake mumbled. "I wanted to go."

"And that's the problem right there." Dawson said. "You seem to think that it's okay to disobey us and do whatever you want. Do you think our rules for you are open for interpretation?"

"No, it's not like that."

"Then what is it?" Casey demanded. "Obviously I've been too lenient on you because you haven't learned this lesson yet. Do I have to tan your hide to get through to you?"

"No sir," Jake mumbled.

"Because that's where we are right now, Jake." Casey said. "This is the third time I've had this conversation with you and it will be the last. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes sir." Jake nodded.

"And Grace," Casey said, turning to her.

Jake looked at Grace and then back to Dawson and Casey. "This was my idea, and I convinced her to go."

"Oh, I have no doubt about that." Casey nodded. "But before you continue, Grace has a mind of her own and she is very capable of making her own decisions."

"It's okay, Jake, you didn't make me go." Grace said. "How long are we grounded for?"

"You're not grounded, that doesn't seem to work." Casey shook his head. "So, we're going to try something different."

"You lied to us, and you broke our trust, and for that, you're going to lose privileges and you're not going to get them back until we decide that we can trust you again." Dawson explained.

"This is the third time you're being punished for the same thing, so you're losing three privileges." Casey said to Jake. "The first one is the car, you can drive to school, here, home and that's it. The second one is motocross racing, that's done, it's not happening and I don't want to hear about it again. And the third is that you've lost ride along privileges during co-op. You will come here, you will clean and you will run drills, but you will not leave this house."

"But Dad, co-op is for school."

"And co-op will continue, you get to see what being a candidate is all about. That means you follow Gabby and any job she gets, you get too." He said before turning to Grace. "The same goes for you."

"I talked to Antonio, co-op will be limited for you too." Dawson said. "And no car privileges for you either."

"Got it." Grace nodded.

"Okay, I have to talk to Herrmann." Dawson said. "And Severide wants to talk to you, Jake."

Jake sighed but followed her out of the room. Grace said sitting on the bed and Casey watched her, a frown forming on his face. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I just don't feel well." She said as she rubbed her head. "Do we have ginger ale?"

"Yeah, I think in the fridge." He said. "Did you take your medication?"

"I haven't taken any since lunch." Grace said. "It doesn't hurt that bad right now."

"Grace," Casey moved to sit beside her on the bed and put his arm around her, pulling her close to him and kissing her head. Grace was always surprised how easily his demeanour could change. "Are you worried about taking the pills after what happened the last time?"

"I don't know," Grace sighed. "Yeah, maybe."

"Listen to me, I know what's going on in that head of yours, and you're wrong, Gracie." Casey said. "This isn't like the last time and we aren't going to judge you for taking the pills if you need them for the pain."

"What if it happens again?" She asked. "What if I'm like her?"

"You're not your mother, Grace." He said. "I will never let you get that far down the wrong road. I took my eyes off of her, but I'm not taking my eyes off of you."

Grace nodded and was quiet for a few moments. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you the truth about the party," She sighed. "Jake comes up with these schemes and I feel like if I don't go with him, he's the one that's going to go too far down that road."

"I get it, you don't want to rat him out, it's a sibling thing and I understand." He said. "But let me tell you something, you're not doing him any favours, Grace. Just like I wasn't doing your Mom any favours when I'd cover for her."

"Well, maybe I won't have to cover for him anymore. I think you may have gotten through to him this time." She said. "He loves working with you and going on calls, so that was a good consequence."

Casey smirked. "That was Gabby's idea."

"Yeah, I figured." Grace smiled with a nod.

OOOOO

Antonio picked Grace up for co-op that morning and she was a bit nervous as she climbed into his car. She hadn't seen or talked to him since the party, but she knew he knew about it, and she knew he wasn't going to be happy with her. He didn't start driving, but instead waited for her to look at him and when she did, he looked at her and raised his eyebrows.

"I know, I know." Grace sighed. "It was stupid."

"Yes, it was." He nodded. "And if you lie to me, or you disobey me, this ends. Co-op for you will be over. You hear me?"

"Yeah, I hear you." She said.

"Alright, good." He nodded and started driving. "Now, I know Gabby wants me to limit you or whatever, but as far as I'm concerned, you didn't break my trust. So, I won't tell if you won't?"

"Really?" She looked at him with a grin and a bit of surprise. "Deal."

"But, here's the catch." He said as they pulled up in front of the station and he turned towards her. "I want to talk about you and Tyler."

**A/N: Check out my new Chicago Fire/Chicago PD crossover story about Severide's sister.**

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